who is my neighbor?

5/13/10 Cathy and I don't really know our neighbors. We don't do things--walk, eat meals, visit, work with, worship with--those people who live next to us. We have a diverse group around us with many races, ages, size of family, etc., from our limited observations as people walk by our house, but we don't really know them.

This past week our next door neighbors were going to be gone for several days, and they asked us to pick up their newspapers and to watch their house. This we dutifully did. They did not arrive back at the time they said they would. In fact, they got back more than a day late. I was reading a novel in the front of our house when I heard a cab pull up with our neighbors. I immediately went out and returned to them their papers and asked how they were doing. Their plane had been delayed and they spent an extra night in Las Vegas. They thanked me for watching over their house. It was the longest conversation that we had had.

The next day there was a Harley-Davidson motorcycle parked on a trailer in front of their house. When I went to get the mail, my neighbor was out front working on it. I asked him if he got a new toy. No, it belonged to a friend of his who had died, and now he was trying to resolve his friend's estate. The bike had some minor issues (needed battery, throttle cable, etc.). He went on and on about how to get the bike ready to sell. This was now the longest conversation we had had.

At this point, I need to mention that for months I have been praying for my neighbors in the mornings when I go out walking. My prayer is for the adults to mature in Christ, for marriages to be healed, for the adults to be good parents, and for the kids to learn a lot in school. I pray for their work, their play, and their praying. I am getting to know my neighbors.

Love,
Lynn