Cindy on November 15th, 2010
I am of the opinion that my life belongs to the whole community and as long as I live, it is my privilege to do for it whatever I can. I want to be thoroughly used up when I die, for the harder I work the more I live.” ~George Bernard Shaw
Like friendship, community building takes care and effort — and modern life typically conspires against it. Thanks to a troubled economy, people move around a lot more now.
And even if we try to set down roots, it’s not easy to connect with neighbors. If we’re not multi-tasking at the office, we’re all cloistered at home in communion with the TV or our laptops. Building a stronger, safer, cozier, cooler, and friendlier neighborhood involves moving outside our comfort zones to talk to each other, just for starters.
My community always tops my gratitude list. I’ve lived here in Royal Oak for 28 years, and I’m thankful to be surrounded by folks who’ve bothered to read my weekly newspapers columns for ages and, bless them, even purchased my books. So I’m more than a little excited to be a part of Royal Oak Patch, a hyper-local and interactive online news service.
I’ll be contributing a weekly Sunday column starting November 21st. I’ll be on my usual “beat” — sharing thoughts from the home front on issues that many of us wrestle with, no matter where we live: the new empty nest, aging parents, career changes and semi-retirement, difficult relationships, and the challenge of finding balance in a world intent on driving us all a bit crazy. From the perspective of my front porch and home office, I’ll talk about places close to home and people dear to my heart.
Half the fun of this new venture is that I’m working with veteran journalists I met through other newspaper gigs in my hometown. And one of my neighbors, author Gerry Boylan, is a fellow columnist. In his inaugural Patch column today, Gerry offers the best description I’ve ever read about Royal Oak: “It’s apple pie ala mode, a drive right down the middle of the fairway, a strike over the middle of the plate, someplace that feels like home the day you move in and that’s why you don’t move out.”
Even if you don’t live in our town, you’re always welcome to visit Royal Oak Patch. Drop by and see what we’re up to. — CL
Cindy on November 30th, 2009
Our national myths often exaggerate the role of individual heroes and understate the importance of collective effort.” — Robert Putnam
Taking advantage of the unseasonably warm weather this month, I took a late afternoon bike ride through our subdivision. As I waved at neighbors who were fastening holiday lights to picket fences and evergreen branches, it occurred to me that my community always tops my annual gratitude list. My family and I have lived in the same neighborhood for more than 20 years, and I can’t think of anywhere else I’d rather be.
I know several people who crave more exotic adventures or like to move to before it’s time to repaint the living room. Americans are highly mobile — and often out of necessity. Our jobs force us to transfer. Or we follow the sun to warmer climates and better economic conditions. But wherever we live, most of us long to live in safe, strong communities where civility is valued and practiced. We want to be neighborly, notes Robert Putnam in Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community.
I couldn’t agree more. I enjoy visiting local diners “where everybody knows your name.” I prefer shopping at the same grocery store and claiming a favorite booth at local restaurants. One of my favorite jobs — though it paid poorly — was writing for my hometown newspaper and meeting readers in line at the post office.
Feeling connected to a community is as essential to me as having food and shelter, and I’m fortunate enough to live in a place where residents are making an effort to meet one another — and where creating a safe environment is a top priority. And it’s not as if my neighbors and I are stuck in a nostalgic time warp. We know from experience that neighborhoods, like families, are far from perfect. We know that building community isn’t simply a matter of throwing a great block party.
Michigan has suffered twice as hard during this tough economic recession, and our subdivision has seen an increase in theft and vandalism. Which is why we got serious and banded together. We began meeting in kitchens and living rooms to brainstorm a few solutions. For starters, we joined our city’s Neighborhood Watch Program, and then established a neighborhood e-mail chain to help keep everyone informed and connected. In the process, we started learning each other’s names as well as the needs of our immediate community.
Of course, creating a real community requires extra effort — and modern life typically conspires against it. When we’re not multi-tasking at the office, most of us are cloistered at home in communion with the TV or the computer. Building a stronger, friendlier neighborhood demands that we move outside our comfort zones and get involved. It requires that we log off our computers and visit a local park or attend a town meeting.
There are many small steps you can take to strengthen your own community bond. For starters, support neighborhood merchants and restaurants, and subscribe to your local paper. Learn more about local issues and politicians. (If others complain that the government isn’t working, suggest they help fix it.) Make a favorite dinner for a new neighbor and offer to share tools or your snow blower.
As anthropologist Margaret Mead once said, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.” – Cindy La Ferle
– Photo of Main Street, downtown Royal Oak –
My community always tops my gratitude list. I’ve lived here in Royal Oak for 28 years, and I’m thankful to be surrounded by folks who’ve bothered to read my weekly newspapers columns for ages and, bless them, even purchased my books. So I’m more than a little excited to be a part of Royal Oak Patch, a hyper-local and interactive online news service.
