A Roadmap to a Better Community

Editor: Roger is a long-standing friend of many La Salettes in the United States. He is an alumnus and recently shared these basic profound truths on his Facebook page concerning building any kind of community—your own family, work environment, parish or religious community.

Lately, I've been fascinated by the DIY (Do It Yourself) network programs where people build off the Grid... The way communities used to do. I especially love the series Maine Cabin Masters where they tackle 50-100-year-old cabins on the Maine lakes and inlets and update them.

After a while, one can pick up the pattern:

1. Ask the owners what they would like to see kept and what they want changed.
2. Level the foundation... otherwise everything built on it will fail.
3. Check the main beams to see if termites, ants, or other forms of rot have weakened the structure.
4. Add more windows to let in more light.
5. Tear down excessive walls and dead space to provide freer open space to spread more light.
6. Update all the utilities to provide basic needs: food, warmth/cooling, plumbing, inviting gathering spaces... and comfortable bedrooms.
7. When rebuilding, be sensitive to items that have sentimental value [Art, artifacts, history, etc.]
8. Be sensitive to the location on which one builds because the outside needs to be the inviting face of the cabin.
9. Build a home for the four seasons, not just one-season dwellings.
10. Just about every program featured an outdoor fire pit where members and guests gather in the evenings to simply share their stories.

I'm sure there are other lessons as well. Everything I've mentioned about a "Cabin" also applies to rebuilding any community.
Catedral de Sal, Parque De La Sal, Zipaquirá, Cundinamarca, Colombia

(Reprinted with permission of Roger A. Chauvette)