A beautiful day in your neighborhood

“Building a community means fostering friendships that light up the neighborhood.” – Amy Williams

As reported in a new Pew Research poll, only about a quarter of American adults know all or even most of their neighbors. Thanks to social media, we have scores of online friends around the country — but we can’t recall the names of the folks who live across the street. At most, we might wave at our neighbors from the car as we’re leaving the house.

It takes time and shared experience to build solid relationships. Likewise, forging a friendly neighborhood requires care and effort. But work, family, and outside social commitments leave us little extra time to socialize with the people on our block.

One of the biggest blessings in my life is having neighbors who’ve become great friends over the years — and often feel like family. We have an active book club, share meals together, walk together, and support each other in times of need.

As noted in a recent article in Nice News, spending time with our neighbors is a huge step toward building a strong community. This timely, well-researched article discusses the many benefits of connecting with our neighbors, and includes tips on how to cultivate positive relationships wherever you live. To read it, click here. ~CL