The Third Place
Have you heard? We finally have internet! Well, a version of it anyway. It’s strong enough to take us through these next 4 years if necessary. And maybe one day the condo board will come around to approving our request for fiber. Anyway, I'm currently feeling the same level of euphoria I did whenever I got to drink tap water while we were living in Kazakhstan. Yup, that's right: I'm equating WiFi with potable h2o, lol! (Well, these days, it is almost as essential, wouldn't you agree?)
I feel I've fallen sorely behind on keeping you updated about our various experiences since we arrived in Rome. I continue to enjoy getting lost and having strange and wonderful encounters with the city, the country and its citizens. For example, the day we got on the wrong train and end up, totally by chance, at the Spoleto Festival of Sweets!
Here’s a picture of people hanging out on church steps at the Spoleto Sagra - a lunch break of savoury dishes from various food trucks to counterbalance the samples of sweets throughout the city.
Recently, I came across the idea of the Third Place. Have you heard of this concept before? No, it's not the bronze medal... this is the idea that aside from Home (first place) and Work (second place), many of us have a Third Place where we go out in public to relax. When I heard about this idea, the person sharing it argued that Third Places are more common in Europe than they are in North America: going to a common meeting ground like church steps, a town square, a coffee shop, a park just to sit and hang out does seem to be more common than it is in Ottawa for example. This person opened with, "do you ever notice that you are happier when you are in Europe than when you are in the States?"
At an amphitheatre, enjoying some live music
That was quite the hook!
Obviously, there could be many reasons for this elevated feeling of happiness, like, first off, being on holiday. But it did get me thinking because, yes, I personally feel happier in Europe than I do in Canada. Could this be the reason why? Because I am more likely to take advantage of the many great Third Places I have at my fingertips here?
So far, I have a couple of Third Places: one is the coffee shop I go to every morning during my break at the language institute I study at 3 hours every day. Another is the nearby park where we often go together as a family, to toss a ball around, read a book, or go for a walk.
People on boats, on a lake, in a park, in the middle of Rome
For me, the Third Place allows me to feel more physically connected to the community around me, and this in turn allows me to access that feeling of belonging more quickly.
How exciting to think that we can deliberately create that feeling of belonging, no matter where we are in the world, by looking for that place outside of work and home where everybody knows your name!
I have this theory that the best way to start feeling like I belong in a new city or a new environment (maybe a new job) is to invest myself into the community. There are a variety of ways we invest ourselves at the beginning of this journey to belonging: maybe the investment is financial – paying for that cup of coffee every day, or perhaps it is more of a time investment – volunteering at a local soup kitchen or at a church. Sometimes, it is a social investment – making that courageous first step to put yourself out there in public. But the rewards are there: we make friends, we develop a routine, we feel like we are making a contribution. And this is why we do it again and again.
People strolling out on the street, specifically to enjoy the lights.
The Third Place idea also includes a really key concept that I hadn’t thought of before – we also get to relax! What an amazing benefit, especially in the busy-ness of the current season. I hope you can find some time this week to enjoy your Third Place, wherever it may be!
