Do you know your Neighbors?

Here is our neighbor Shirley.
Proverbs 27:10 Do not forsake your friend and the friend of your father, and do not go to your brother's house when disaster strikes you--better a neighbor nearby than a brother far away."

I love having neighbors. I love the idea and practice of being neighborly. Growing up we had wonderful neighbors. I can think of five different families that lived on our street growing up, with whom my family shared our lives with. I still keep in touch with them today and they are my friends. As a kid, it was good for me to see how different families run and live (examining the good, the bad, and the ugly).

Shirley is our neighbor. She is in her late 80's and has been widowed for 15 yrs or so. She still wears her wedding ring. Our other neighbor mows her lawn for her once a week from spring through summer. It has been great getting to know Shirley. All of her family lives in the Seattle area or south of there, so she typically is alone, as she says most of her friend's here have died.

I like Shirley and think it is interesting to hear stories from her about the old days. We have each others' phone numbers and I could call her if I need something and she calls me when she needs something.

Our neighbors across the street are the Isaksons. They are a family of four and Yvonne and her two boys take care of our animals when we are out of town. They are really sweet. We've exchanged phone numbers with them as well. Last night she brought over some veggie scraps to feed to our pig.

Do you know your neighbors? Who are they? Can you trust them? Be wise in this area, don't risk your safety or your family's safety just because you want to be neighborly. However, it is important to build community and your neighbors are people in close proximity to you. Make an effort to get to know them. And even if you've lived where you do for a while and have never extended a hand of friendship to your neighbors, do it now and begin being a neighbor.