Sometimes I think the automatic garage door opener is a threat to a good neighborhood. You press a button, the door goes up, you drive in and then the door goes down. There’s no danger of you having to interact with anyone.
Saturday night, we had a block party. Our next-door neighbors cooked hot dogs; everyone else brought a dish. A football game was projected on a sheet on the side of a house and we sat outside and braved the mosquitoes. The new family down the street stopped by. The kids all ran around, played and had a good time.
It was Mississippi back before air conditioning drove us off the front porch.
Our street is in the same boat. We watch strange cars. We keep an eye out for each other’s home. Kids run in and out of the houses.
It’s the neighborhood.
It’s home.
Be grateful. Even in our small town, our street has changed tremendously over the last 15 years. But it seems to be evolving yet again into a kid-full neighborhood. I like it :)