[2022-08-16] Neighbours
One of the great pleasures of retirement is having time for neighbours.
Not since my children were younger have I had the time to chat with others in my community. It feels like a luxury that, in recent years, I couldn't afford.
When Shane and Melanie were very young, we interacted with most of the kids on the street as well as their parents. We were particularly close to the next-door neighbours who lived beside us when we first moved in. When we would make a big batch of something, we would call over to them and simply say, "Meet me in the back." That meant something delicious was about to be passed from our townhouse balcony to theirs. We would send over cookies and cakes, and my neighbour, an Italian lady, would send over stuffed manicotti and rhubarb from her garden. I believe the practice of sharing food started when we borrowed the proverbial cup of sugar (or perhaps it was an egg) from our neighbours; as a thank you, we returned some of the food that we had made with the sugar or the egg.
As our children grew and went off to school, their friends were less likely to be other kids from the street. And once Freddie entered our lives, we spent more of our leisure time outside the neighbourhood, at the Bruce Pit dog park or at my mom's place in the country.
Over the years, my job became more demanding. I started leaving my neighbourhood earlier in the morning and coming back home later in the evening. Homework in the evenings and on weekends became the norm. What free time I did have was devoted to my family.
But ever since I stopped working outside the home—first on medical leave, then in retirement—I've been able to spend more time outside, interacting with others who live on my street. That's how I came to own a cancer scarf, knitted for me by my 12-year-old neighbour after she heard that I had cancer.
This evening, Chris called out to me to bring him a small bandage. Fortuitously, I had just organized all our bandages this morning. I grabbed the container and headed outside to find Chris with one of the neighbourhood kids. The boy was sitting on my front steps, nursing what appeared to be a minor cut on his right index finger. I gave a bandage to Chris, who applied it to the injury. Chris already had a reputation as the street bike-fixer; he can now add bandage-applier to his resume.
As Chris tended to his patient, my new neighbour called out to say that she and her family had enjoyed the antique car show I had told her about just before supper. I was thrilled to have been able to recommend something she and her family would enjoy. She mentioned that she is learning English, and I offered to help.
Earlier in the day, I chatted with another neighbour after commenting to her young daughter on how much I liked her Supergirl dress. I then said to my neighbour, "Did your husband tell you that I stole some of your chives." "Oh yes," she replied, "and I'm so glad you did. Help yourself anytime you want more."
What a wonderful thing it is to have friendly neighbours. Years ago, I got home late from work one day, just five minutes before I was to coach a soccer practice. Chris was out of town with our car, and the practice field was a 15-minute walk away. Just then, one of my neighbours pulled in to his driveway. I called out to him: "André, would you be able to drive me and my daughter to our soccer practice?" It was a bold request, but he readily agreed. I always remembered his kindness.
It is a joy to live in a neighbourly community. As Ralph Nader said, "When strangers start acting like neighbors...communities are reinvigorated." I, too, feel reinvigorated now that I once again have time for neighbours.
