Community

A couple of months ago, I saw an excellent movie called The Dog Stars, based on a 2012 novel by Peter Heller. In it, Jacob Elordi plays a pilot who hides out at an abandoned airport with his dog and a buddy as they ride out the apocalypse after a virus has wiped out most of humanity. From time to time, he flies out in his little Cessna Skywagon on supply runs, but longs for community beyond his little stockade.

Some (most?) preppers have this fantasy of bugging out to the woods with their dog when things go down. With me, that urge started young. When I was around 7 years old, I decided I was going to run away from home because my life was so very terrible or something ridiculous like that. The only thing that stopped me was the realization that there was no way I could pack enough food for my dog Bonnie, a Labrador Retriever who loved to eat, and I couldn't brave the world without her-- so I stayed. That beautiful overfed dog probably saved my life that day.

As far as bugging out to the woods goes, it's a romantic notion fostered by stories of Daniel Boone and various mountain men when we were kids. (Just me?) Live off the land! Cool. It's such a cultural norm that Jan and Stan Berenstain even wrote about it in a Berenstain Bears children's book "Too Much Vacation" that I used to read to my own children. In it, the family rents a run-down vacation cabin in the woods and Popa Bear promises big to live off the land by catching fish, etc. It predictably doesn't go well. (Fortunately for the family, Moma Bear was experienced enough with Poppa Bear to bring snacks.) In my own childhood, I have a treasured memory where my parents rented a cabin for vacation. The trip wasn't a storybook disaster, but I remember my caffeine addicted father making coffee on the stove by boiling it in his sock. "It was a clean sock!" he protested.

While romantic, bugging out to the woods is a truly terrible idea, according to the experts. Few people today actually have the skills to live off the land. Public lands will be filled with others who have had the same bright idea, and private lands have landowners who are already there, well-armed, and who will likely see you as a threat to be eliminated! Besides, how much food, water and gear can you actually carry on your back? And as a practical matter, when will you sleep? The military assumes a minimum of three people to keep effective watch. Then there need to be other people doing reconnaissance, water purification, shelter, food prep, and waste disposal. One person can't do it all. Two people can't do it all, really. Some professional infantry guys say the minimum number is 8, but 10-20 would be better. You need a community.

I was praying last night and God showed me a small plane. It was an old high-wing single-engine monoplane, like an old Piper Cub or the larger Cessna Skywagon from the movie. This type of aircraft is highly favored by Alaskan bush pilots because it can take off and land in extremely short spaces, such as river sandbars. In the vision, the plane was white, with orange trim, a paint scheme reminiscent of the early 1970's. It was climbing as though it had just taken off and was scrambling for altitude. But as I watched, it visibly crumbled as though crushed by the hands of God, and it fell from the sky like a dead fly.

(But God, what does it mean?) I think it was a personal message to me, but it may be for others as well. The imagery of the plane took my memory to the movie where the rugged individualist takes to the sky, charting his own path. The plane climbing was reminiscent of escaping. The flight was a divine visual word-play. Flight, not as in traveling through the air in an airplane, but Flight-- as in fleeing. Running away from the problem. I was watching a bug-out. And as I watched, God stopped it cold.

Many things in life make us feel like running away. Some people are avoidants. Their preferred method of conflict resolution is to leave instead of dealing with the problem. They take their ball and go home instead of talking it out. I hate that. I believe God designed us for community.

Psalm 68:6 tells us "God sets the lonely in families..." and Genesis 2:18 tells us,

The LORD God said, "It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him."

And so God made Eve, and presented her to Adam. (Happy Day! His very own naked woman!) God designed us for community, and has allowed me to be part of several communities. For example, I married into a large and loving family who creates opportunities to celebrate life together. Thanksgiving is the biggest holiday of the year. About 50 of us gather in a big circle and each person in turn tells the group what they are thankful for. I am part of other communities as well, such as the Facebook group Mantle Cell Lymphoma: The Journey. They were instrumental in getting me though my cancer treatment, keeping me company and letting me know I was not alone. (Thanks, Momma Bear.) My local church has small discipleship groups, and my wife and I are part of one that can't go a day without teasing and loving on each other in the group chat. And speaking of loving relationships, I came home from the hospital from my cancer treatment on our 25th wedding anniversary. My wife declared, "Free Trial Period over. No exchanges, no returns." Haha! (She's a keeper.)

And so friends, I am convinced hard times are coming, and going it alone can get you killed. God designed us to be in community-- in relationship with like-minded others. In the movie The Dog Stars, the hero finally finds his people. You should too.

So, do you have a tribe? War drums are beating loudly these days. Better find your people now and learn how to get along. Also, watch the movie if you get a chance. Director Ridley Scott is a master story teller, and actors Jacob Elordi and Margaret Qualley pull off one of my favorite cinematic love stories. (Some other personal favorites in the love story category would be 50 First Dates and Dances With Wolves, but that's just me.)

If you enjoyed this, check out my book "101 God Thoughts: A Spiritual Journey from Covid to Cancer." You can find it at Amazon at https://www.amazon.com/clp/B0CRB9ZW96?lv=shuf&language=he&channelId=500

There is nothing like enjoying real coffee around a good campfire.

(Still shot from the movie The Dog Stars, 2026 by 20th Century Studios.)