Listening to the wall

At the core of the human experience lies a deep yearning for connection. We navigate our cultural and social landscapes seeking belonging – tracing lineage, affirming authenticity, and securing credibility for ourselves and the communities we claim.

In our individual lives, we craft statements to attract connection and fill the silences between them with imagined truths. When real connections fall short of our hopes, we adjust – shifting our stance, retreating, or constructing new statements to protect ourselves.

My wife’s heritage is Irish – an identity I can never fully inhabit, but one I felt compelled to understand beyond the headlines and histories I glimpsed as a child, watching footage of The Troubles. That often violent lack of connection between Republicans and Loyalists painted a region torn between allegiances. Visiting Belfast, I found myself confronting not only the remnants of external conflict but also the internal tension between my curiosity and my respect for a place still healing.

What I encountered there was not division, but a sincere welcome. A city scarred yet resilient, where the pursuit of reconciliation has begun to outshine the legacy of recrimination. I learned that connection requires courage, to begin and also to sustain. And I was reminded that no connection should ever be taken for granted.

This work is my attempt to reflect on these moments – where cultural inheritance, conflict, and compassion meet – and to ask what it truly means to belong.