by hopefulneighbo | Nov 2, 2023 | Neighborhood Well-being, Pursue the Common Good
A look back on a difficult time in our lives … and how it can bring hope for the future of our neighborhoods. The second week of March 2020 was a time that most of us won’t soon forget. That week marked the beginning of the effects of the COVID pandemic in our...
by hopefulneighbo | Oct 19, 2023 | Pursue the Common Good
“Good fences make good neighbors” is a quote often misused. This line is frequently used to justify building a fence and keeping neighbors at arm’s length. But that was not the author’s recommendation. In Robert Frost’s 1914 poem, “Mending Wall,” he...
by hopefulneighbo | Sep 26, 2023 | Pursue the Common Good
There is an epidemic of loneliness in the United States, and it is serious. Lack of connection can increase the risk for premature death to levels comparable to smoking 15 cigarettes a day, according to a new advisory from the U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy. n...
by hopefulneighbo | Sep 7, 2023 | Neighborhood Well-being, Pursue the Common Good
National Good Neighbor Day is September 28. Do you have the date saved in your calendar? Until a few years ago, I had no idea this holiday even existed. I wasn’t aware that in 1978 then-President Jimmy Carter signed a nationwide proclamation to promote the idea of...
by hopefulneighbo | Aug 8, 2023 | Pursue the Common Good
I get a daily Google Alert by email with links to stories, articles, and videos that use the phrase, “Love Your Neighbor.” Skimming those links shows hundreds, if not thousands, of examples of what that phrase is not. First, “love your...
by hopefulneighbo | May 30, 2023 | Getting to Know Your Neighbors, Imagine the Possibilities, Neighborhood Well-being, Pursue the Common Good
I grew up mowing lawns in my hometown of Ash Grove, Missouri. My dad provided me with a riding and trim mower that I could use to mow other yards, that is, if I cut our lawn when asked—and without complaint. For seven years, I had ten yards within a half-mile of my...
