I have lived in this house now for almost 4 1/2 years already. I can't hardly how fast the time has passed. However, that is beside the point. After all this time, I barely know my neighbors. This bothers me. For the longest time, I just told myself that I was too busy with work, graduate school, and other activities (note my intentional use of activities here b/c these, ironically, primarily include church-related activities) to find time to interact with my neighbors.
Mainly, I was scared.
I'm embarrassed now to recognize these excuses. Obviously, there is no presto-chango to rectify this situation. However, I have been trying to at least be alert to when the neighbors are out so that I can wave or say hi or offer a hot dog (if the fire pit is burning, of course).
Today, I edged a significant portion of one neighbor's sidewalk. I used this time to worship and think about interactions with others. It wasn't long until someone stopped to ask for directions to the soccer fields. (Coincidentally, when we were out making the bicycle video, someone stopped and asked for directions to the soccer fields, too.) There is a little bit more to the story, though. You see, the edger wasn't even mine. Trent let me use it to edge my own sidewalk and he graciously let me hold onto it for awhile longer until I could work on the neighbor's sidewalk.
I started wondering...
What would it look like to live in a neighborhood where neighbors lived in community with each other - open doors, cookouts, and no fences? What if people actually took down fences instead of putting up fences? What if we actually considered our porches as extensions of our homes - and spent quality time out there?
What would it look to actually strive to have less and share more? After all, people only need to edge their sidewalks once a year (or every two, three, or six years).
I find this all more than a little unsettling.
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3 comments:
I think there is a huge emphasis on the individual in our culture. It's hard to share because we feel like we are not "making it on our own." Even church's fall into this stuff. A lot of church people don't want anything to do with the ones across town. They think they can "Do it on their own." How can the church be trend setters? How can we show people what it looks like to live in community with one another? It is always easy to overlook the fact that it probably starts with us changing the way we act before asking others to do the same.
Great post T. Keep'm coming and Keep it Real.
I sort of relate to this. We have lived in our house only a year and don't really know our neighbors. Granted we wave to each other every now and again and when we first moved in a couple of them did initiate to introduce themselves but that's been the extent of it. I have tried to rationalize this in a couple ways. The first is that well, we are the newbies. They should be extending out to us. But that really shouldn't matter-even though I find it difficult to initiate social interaction. The other is that they are all much older than us with grown children and it is difficult to relate. But I know this can't be true because look at our adult Sunday school class. There is one other couple in our generation and most of the rest are much older. No one with really young children even-upper elementary at the youngest. I just look at my parents' neighborhood and how many of them have come to my open houses and even our wedding. They care for each other's dogs, share belongings, and go to anniversary parties. It would be nice to have that and I don't know if that is really unique because that's all I've ever known. I suppose it just takes time in some cases. They have lived there for 20 years now...But I don't know what the answer is. All I guess I wanted to share as that I can relate. :)
Todd this is great stuff. This post, and your newer post about yearning for a different way of living.
It's here! It's happening! There are real concrete things you can be (and are!) doing. I have more ideas.
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