Do you know your neighbors by name? Could you give them a wave hello and say, “Good morning, John,” or “Hi, Mrs. Smith!”
Most of you would say yes…to a degree. No one knows their neighbors who live all the way down the block or a block away, unless you know them from block parties or similar shared interests.
But how many of us know the names of our neighbors just past our next-door neighbors’ house? I don’t. I feel very friendly with my neighbors on either side of my house and friendly enough with my neighbors across the street. Yet if you asked me the names of the people just one more door down the street, I’d shake my head and say, “I have no idea.”
Imagine what it would be like if we all just mustered the courage to introduce ourselves and say hello to a couple more neighbors. Imagine if we took the time to go to just “one more door”. And if you already know your neighbors two doors down, then say hi to your neighbors who live three doors down and so on.
Too shy to try? Ask your neighbor to introduce you sometime. Or drop a letter off in their mailbox, and offer your name plus phone number or email address if they ever need anything. If we all went to just “one more door”, our neighborhood, our town, and our world would be that much closer knit!
Do you think getting to know more neighbors is something we should all try to do? Post your thoughts or stories below of how you tried this out. I’d love to hear from you, and we could all use a little more inspiration!
