It Takes a Village

Many people talk about the concept of a village, how it doesn’t seem to exist anymore.  There seemed to be much more  reaching out, such as during the depression in the US.  In other countries, the concept may be more prevalent today than it seems to be in the US.

In the suburbs of the US, life can be particularly disconnected.  The way the neighborhoods are built does not encourage getting to know one’s neighbors.  When coming home from work, one hits the garage button as they approach their house.  The door opens, the car goes in, and the door closes.  The person is not even seen, unless the individual makes a point to come out.

In today’s age, there are various ways one can try to create the concept of being part of a village, or community.  Technology has evolved lifestyles so that it can be incorporated in creating a sense of community.  Busy people can easily connect with others through their blackberries and sites such as Facebook.

Neighbors can take small nurturing steps such as sharing the harvest from their garden with one another or with their colleagues.  Events around the holidays can be created to invite neighbors to in order to get to know one another.

There are also meetup groups on-line around numerous topics and interests that one can easily join to get to know others in any city.  There are always churches and other religious or spiritual groups one can join to be part of a community of like-minded people.

In the end, we can either lament that times have changed and the concept of villages and communities are no longer, or we can take steps to create a sense of community for ourselves.