Do You Know Your Neighbors?
On Slow Life and your community begins with the neighborhood. Being a good neighbor is a state of mind and requires a delicate balance of openness and privacy. Keeping to yourself is not a bad idea but can ultimately cut you off from spontaneous friendships, unexpected security and a sense of well -being. Neighborhoods are microcosms of community and history with natural and architectural guideposts that help place us in a context. It can be a concrete jumble of buildings, but if people are talking to each other, smiling, doing a little of this and that to make someone feel cared for or at home, it’s pretty special. It’s the people and how they treat each other that makes a neighborhood.
Cooking With My International Neighbor
My neighbor is from Iran. She is a fabulous cook and when I visit her for a chat, her kitchen always smells of freshly cooked homemade meals. I asked her to teach me how to cook a simple dish so I could do it at home. I live in a mulit-cultural part of Los Angeles with lots of specialized markets. My cooking class with her brought me into her kitchen and into her culture. Our dogs played, we had a few laughs and I learned how to make a dish with beans, vegetables, chicken, rice and exotic spices. Her charming accent and command of the kitchen right across the street from my house opened doors to another country. I will get the name of the dish but my trip to her kitchen was a slow reminder of the art of the neibhbor.
Learning How To Cook From My Persian Neighbor
When I moved into my house I was delighted by an old style welcome and the kindness of strangers. I was doing work on the place and found it quickly. I relocated from Northern California and I was a bit of a novelty, not a conventional family woman. Within the first week, I received cookies, pastries, cards and well wishes from several folks in the hood. And this is Los Angeles! One thing I do know after living in an old bungalow and courtyard cottages, my neighbors usually become a big part of my life. Front porches and courtyards enable a little interaction. Tending a garden, offering help or simply enduring a little chit chat can evolve into something amazing. After many years of moving around, I realize some of my dearest friends were neighbors. People I met at a garage sale in front of my house or on a hiking trail with our mutual dogs, a shared yard as a renter or a mutual mailbox in a condo were all opportunities to expand my world.
Extreme Neighborhood Activity In Front Of My Old House in Marin
July 4th
Slowing down and saying hello to the neighbor walking their dog or gardening is nice. Letting them dart back in the house in their PJs and pretending you don't see them is another way of being considerate. Picking up mail, papers, or letting them know when something loud and offensive is about to take place at your house is almost saintly. As much as we fear for our privacy and not getting involved, keeping the community spirit circulating no matter where you live is essential to the slow manifesto. Neighborhood gentility helps people of all ages interact, keep an eye on each other and mingle in a world that is getting more alienated. So now that we have social networks, who needs to look up and say hello? Think about it.
Start the neighborhood conversation here and tell us some stories (the good ones) how a neighbor enhanced your life. Yes that means COMMENTS Please we need some inspiration
