In making my way to Columbus by way of Boston and Chicago, I never had a sense of community in either of the previous cities.  Don't get me wrong I love both Boston and Chicago.   However, knowing my neighbors and building relationships outside of work or my circle of friends, was pretty much nonexistent.  I think this has to do partly with my age at the time.  I was in my 20's and focused on work, school and my social life.  I was also focused on where I was going next.  Despite loving both of these parts of the country I never envisioned myself settling down in either.  With that mind set, I didn't give much thought to finding out who my neighbors were.   

     Now that I am older (and wiser, haha) I'm looking for this sense of community.  I am married now and look forward to putting down roots and investing in the people around me on a deeper level.  I am happy to say that within the last few months the sense of community I have been in search of, is starting to take shape.  We have a next door neighbor, who is a quiet man that keeps to himself.  We rarely see him out; however, over the last few months when he's out mowing his lawn, he comes over and mows ours too.  Now, if you know our lawn it's a very small patch of grass, but it can still get unruly.  He has helped us without a second thought or fanfare.  It reminds me of my neighbors when I was growing up and how my parents and them would help each other.  So I made a coffee cake for him in appreciation of the kindness he has shown my husband and me.                

     It's becoming clear to me, that community is something you foster and care for not something that just magically appears in front of you one day.  I look forward to growing this sense of community one baked good at a time.  :)  

(No joke, I couldn't make this up if I tried,  as I was taking a break from writing I looked out my window and saw the community spirit I am writing about.  Our neighbors across the street were giving a mother a stroller because she was walking by carrying her child along with a couple grocery bags.   It warms my heart to see people being kind to each other.  We need more of this in the world.)

"Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. Live the life you've imagined."  H.D. Thoreau