Intentional

There is a word I seem to be hearing a lot more these days.  It is the word “intentional”.
Merril and I went to a Community awareness day recently.  It was led by two guys who had done a lot in the community space and were not just talking from a theory point of view but a “been there, done that,” point of view.
Time and again that word that came up.  The point was being made that knowing the  community is not just a happen upon thing, but an intentional act.  The Cambridge dictionary defines the word intentional in part as “planned or intended” while the Miriam-Webster says, “done with full awareness.”  Some common synonyms are “deliberate, or willing.”
I was listening to an unrelated podcast later and the word intentional came up.  It had me thinking maybe I should have a look and see what it means to me.
When I look at words like this it is often a very simple application I have, and this is one of those. Besides I just think it was something I was doing without having a word to define it.  I say that because before attending this was even thought of, I had done a study of the Census Bureau statistics of Burpengary and near-by suburbs.  I had done it ages ago (relating to the 2011 census) and the latest time was the 2021 statistics.
It is totally unrelated to anything but what stood out was mental illness. In Burpengary it was 12% which was slightly higher than in surrounding suburbs.  But there is heaps of other stuff to be gleaned and it really does give a picture of the area.
So I had been intentional about finding out more about the community I was living in.
But I realize that I am intentional about somethings as it is my bent. and sometimes it involves things that just has to be done.  Study tends to be an intentional act that often involves times where I just don’t feel like it or I cannot see it’s relevance to me.  That is just one of those things.
Often what interests is part of a bigger picture that, while not all may interest, all goes to make up a rounded view.
While studying the community is just one of my things I have realized I have just scratched the surface.  I find it incredibly interesting, but I know there is stuff to wade through that I may not find as interesting but necessary for the overall view.