What is Community?
- John-Michael Scurio
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
Community here isn’t just a concept, it’s a lifestyle ... a living, breathing entity that seeps into every conversation, every handshake, every shared meal. It’s the kind of place where people still look each other in the eye, where hellos are exchanged with the sincerity of old hymns and goodbye waves linger like a promise to return. There’s an unspoken pact among the locals ... a commitment to lift each other up, to keep each other seen and safe and just a little bit peculiar.
And the secret sauce? It’s the art of lingering. In a world that’s always rushing somewhere, Eureka teaches you to slow down. To stay a little longer on that porch swing, stop an pay attention to the creativity of the busker, to listen a little closer to that stranger’s story, to lean a little further into that hug. Because here, time isn’t measured by clocks but by moments, the kind that make you feel both small and infinite all at once.
Before Jeff, Kirby and I moved here in June 2018, we resided in Dallas, Texas. Everyone in Dallas has got somewhere to be five minutes ago, and they’re willing to run you over to get there.
So many things drew us to Eureka Springs but in the end, I think we were both quite attracted to the pace of Eureka Springs - and THAT was what really drew us here.
In a world perpetually set to fast forward, Eureka Springs moves to the rhythm of a slower, richer cadence and like the sign says across from the ES Train Station as you enter into town from Holiday Island - "Recalling the elegance and pace of an earlier era."
Here, lingering is more than just a pause; it's a way of life. It’s the deliberate act of stretching time, of savoring moments like they’re the last spoonful of the best soup you’ve ever tasted.
You feel it the moment you arrive, a nudge to take a beat, to let your mind and your heart catch up to your feet. It’s in the gentle sway of a porch swing, where conversations stretch out like the shadows of late afternoon. It’s in the coffee shop where the barista remembers your name and asks how your mama’s doing, and it’s in the crystal shop where the owner gives you a book recommendation that feels like a window into your soul.
In Eureka, people linger on sidewalks and in shop doorways, leaning against brick walls like they’ve got nowhere to be but here. Time bends in Eureka Springs, and you learn to love the in-between, those sacred seconds when nothing happens and yet everything is happening.
Lingering here isn’t just a passing act; it’s a radical declaration that life is more than tasks and to-do lists. It’s about holding onto what matters, the warm hand of a friend, the sound of wind through the trees, the last few notes of a street performer's original song. It’s about taking the long way home, sitting a while longer on that bench, talking to Humpty Dumpty and watching as the world slows down around you, inviting you to do the same.
In a society obsessed with productivity, driving toward results and strategically moving forward, Eureka Springs is quiet rebellion. Here, there's power in "be." Just be. Live in the moment and savor it all.
Life here in Eureka Springs constantly reminds me that there is truly power in the pause, beauty in the stillness, and a rare kind of richness in the art of lingering.
THIS is community. Visit here and bask in the "be."❤️
