Won't You Be My Neighbor?

"A bad neighbor is a misfortune, as much as a good one is a great blessing" ~ Hesiod 

I know it is probably not a rarity in rural America, but in a larger city I know how rare it is to know your neighbor. Especially in Dallas, where everyone parks in the back alley, 8 foot fences seclude you from view, and no one is ever in their front yards.

I, however, can thankfully admit that one of my many blessings since moving to Dallas is being able to say that I not only know my neighbor, but she is one of my Texas kindred spirits! LR and her small family live two houses down from us. We live in a very quiet neighborhood, and 2 years ago this week I met her right when I needed her the most...

My husband and I had been married for 3 months and were 500 miles away from our parents, siblings and friends. I was unemployed and learning to master the art of homemaking (still a work in progress sadly).  I was beyond lonely, spending my days with soap opera characters as friends, and after 3 months I took it up with the Lord that I needed some friends, and fast.

On a sunny Sunday afternoon in March we decided to head outside to do some lawn work, when something caught my eye. A tiny lady, came walking down her front steps and was holding what appeared to be a new born. She saw us outside and came over to say hi. My heart was overjoyed and spilled over with happiness as she asked if she could stop by some time when her and her little man were out for a stroll!

And you know what? The next day my door bell rang and I opened the door to see her smiling face and her son bundled up in his stroller. We went for a walk and ended up at a nearby Starbucks for a couple hours. I have no idea what we talked about, but I can still picture us curled up in our corner chairs, sipping our coffee and green-tea, talking about our lives and cooing over her precious little one. 

Since that afternoon we've had many walks, coffee dates, lunches, tea parties, book discussions, movie nights, and laughs. We've had BBQ's, birthday parties, pool parties and celebrated so many of life's blessings together. 

Not only did we make these memories together, but LR introduced me to two of her truly amazing friends, whom I now adore and call my kindred spirits too! (Oh, and our all of our husbands are friends now too!)

And all this happened just because one woman had the courage to come over and say "hi" to another!

A trip to the Dallas Arboretum. ~Oct. 2011 
(L) Me & LR (R)

So yes, meeting your neighbors can be terrifying, at first. Yet, the blessings can be so plentiful!!

Do you know your neighbors?

~JennMarie