Hub Happenings in the Milan / Berlin / Gorham Region

I saw that my life was one vast glowing empty page and I could do anything I wanted. -Jack Kerouac

There’s a special kind of magic that bubbles up when the opportunity to tap into pure possibility arises. All too often, we see the borders of our realities as impenetrable walls, rather than edges of exploration. Bound to demands of raising babies, paying the mortgage, and somehow managing to drink eight glasses of water every day–nevermind the fantasy of eight hours of sleep. In my work with the Community Builders Hub, I have the exquisite opportunity to test these borders. In conversation with neighbors, inviting them to consider Kerouac’s “vast glowing empty page.” What would you do if you could do anything you wanted? Often, we’ve been stymied by our realities for far too long to have a ready answer to that question. 

So, my work is to look for the edges where the light peeks through. Watching where energy builds, hearing the excited hesitation of a heart’s desire, seeing folks discover the spark of their possibility once again. And then, when we can capture that spark and mold it into a tangible and living thing, it’s pure magic. I had the pleasure of witnessing this through Rock the Rec. If the idea for the event acted as a blank page, it was the community members that took the pen and wrote the story. 

So we found ourselves in a dimly lit Rec building on a rainy Saturday night. A dozen kids showing up to play their hearts out and support one another. The nervous excitement that happens when you’re allowed to take ownership over your own possibility was all too palpable. Not just the teenagers that had put so much time and effort into the event, but parents that had the chance to bolster and speak into their kids’ ideas and talents. One community member devoted his evening to ensuring that each band had lights and sound managed for their sets, though he had recently endured great personal tragedy. Some of the kids were second generation musicians, their fathers taking their spots in the audience. We rocked hard, we learned, we discovered and rediscovered our glow in those short moments. And we ate extraordinary amounts of pizza. 

In this work, we often talk about the ripple effect: we watch with bated breath for the next paragraph on the page to emerge, for the next chapter to be written. As I talked with folks during and after Rock the Rec, I could feel people beginning to test their own edges. “What would this look like for me?” I would invite you, dear friend, to begin to ask those questions of yourself. I’m here for you, wanting to add your vast glowing empty page to the book we’re writing together. What would you do, if you could do anything you wanted?