52 Weeks of Neighboring - 7/9

Tip of the Week – Mow someone’s yard or ask a neighbor to mow yours and learn something new about them.

With all of the extra rain and sunshine, yards around our neighborhood are looking extra green. This week’s tip comes from our neighbor Mark, who realized mowing is a great way to give a neighbor a hand, and get to know them. If you have a mower and/or particularly enjoy mowing, offer to cut a neighbor’s grass. Make sure to not offer out of spite. For example, “I can’t believe you have let your grass get this long. It looks terrible and I’m offering to mow it so I don’t have to see it anymore.” is not the right mindset for neighboring. Instead, offer out of your abundance (a mower and the ability to mow) and care for your neighbor. Can’t think of whom to help? Elderly neighbors or neighbors who may be away on vacation are great options.

If you have trouble mowing your yard, consider asking for some help. If you feel intimidated by asking for help from your neighbors, consider your own abundance that would allow you to offer something in return. Personal abundance looks different for everyone. It may be a vacuum cleaner, a ladder, a great brownie recipe, a green thumb, the ability to change car oil, or an ear to listen to a neighbor’s tough day.

Whether you’re sharing or borrowing this week, don’t let the neighboring stop at yard work. Use this neighboring experiment to intentionally learn something new about your neighbor. Continue building relationships and starting new ones. We can’t wait to hear about the change in your neighborhoods from small steps of neighboring like this one.

Happy neighboring!