Won't You Be My Neighbor?

On Saturday, my wife Beth and me went to 20-some homes in our neighborhood (we are new to the neighbood, having moved in June) to let them know that our church would have groups of 4-5 stopping by their houses next week for about 10 minutes to do free community service (clean windows, yardwork, wash the car, etc. see Pastor Scott's blog entry for 9/30/2005). I never realized how intimidating it is to walk up to a strangers house. It was as if each house was surrounded by a moat and the sidewalk that lead to the front door was a drawbridge. It was really tough!

It helped that we could introduce ourselves as being new to the neighborhood and we were able to make some instant connections. One home had Rusty Wallace memorabilia hanging in the garage so we talked about NASCAR. Being new to the neighborhood, those who have lived in the neighborhood since it was first built engaged in conversation about the changes they've seen over the years. My Dad was another natural connection point.

It was actually a role reversal between my Dad and me. My parents were church-planters in the Philippines beginning when I was 3-years old. We moved every four years and in most of the towns in which we lived, being an active and only blonde-haired, blue-eyed child, I stuck out from everyone else and gained instant recognition in the town. This provided instant connections for my parents to begin building relationships throughout town. Now the opposite is occurring. My Dad lives with us so we can care for him and he regulalry walks around our neighborhood for exercise. As we talked to our neighbors on Saturday several mentioned that they had seen or talked with my Dad on his walks and he provided an instant connection.

It was fascinating to observe the diverse receptions we received. One neighbor, who had gotten married the week before, walked away saying to himself, "Wow, I can't believe how everything in my life is going great!" Others were floored that someone would help them out for free. Others were slightly more skeptical and weren't sure if they'd be home next Saturday. One house we visited were cold in their response and didn't give any feedback - that was awkward. Out of the 20-some homes, only 6 weren't home. Though it took more than two hours (and I had to give up watching the Penn State/Minnesota game), it was a good afternoon.

HINT: If you can't remember your neighbor's names, or to count the number of homes in your neighborhood, use the Lancaster County Geographic Information System to help remind you. Just locate your property, then select your neighbor's property.