In the past, I have blogged about .
Today, I’m blogging about something else very dear to my heart: my neighbors.
I believe that forming a strong sense of community is important. In an age of voicemails, emails, texting, and social networking, communication is easy and convenient.
It is also easy to get lost in technology and miss out on the human touch. Many families are over-scheduled and don’t have time to reach out and know their neighbors — kids don’t have time to “just” play. Neighbors who don’t know each other might not know when something is amiss.
The neighborhood in which my family lives in is filled with children who play outside, ride their bikes up and down the sidewalks, run, dig, scream, and go to school together. Parents watch each other’s children, cook together, cry together, share life-changing events together, and volunteer at school together.
Our neighborhood took the opportunity of , to once
again get the families on our block together to share a meal. We grilled, ate, and laughed together. We talked about the new neighbors and how we need to reach out and meet them too.
Our neighborhood community gives our kids a chance to be kids, play outside and use their imaginations. They get a lot of exercise. Our neighborhood community
adds a level of safety and crime prevention. We all have each other’s backs.
There has been much talk about the recent rash of crime in Castro Valley, this it makes it even more important to reach out and know your neighbors.
Life gets busy. It would be easy to simply wave “hi” to the family across the street and then be on our way. Our neighborhood has taken the time to do more. As a result, our block is safe. We look out for each other, care for each other, and really, really know each other.
We are more than just neighbors, we are more than social networking friends.
We are a community of families.
