Hello Mi Neighbour | The characteristics of a good neighbour

Hello mi neighbour! Wouldn't you be happy for the good fortune of having good next-door neighbours wherever you may reside? Thank heavens, I've been so blessed! Good next-door neighbours are priceless. They are far enough to allow for breathing yet close enough to help with breathing if necessary! And they aren't perfect, mark you.

Good neighbours bring stability and continuity to the community in many ways. The bond in these communities is usually so strong that people are often reluctant to move out. Even where independence and privacy are treasured, openings for sharing in times of need still abound.

Someone can borrow a hammer, a few nails, a little sugar, and two plates to accommodate visitors without feeling funny. It is a well-known fact that interaction between neighbours creates happy neighborhoods

Good next-door neighbours are knowledgeable of telephone numbers, schools their children attend, time they are due home, and so on.

 

GETTING THE MESSAGE?

 

These neighbours communicate with each other frequently, watching the backs of one another, making it easy to spot trespassers and avoid danger. They recognise whenever things are out of whack and are always quick to take appropriate actions. The neighbour who lives alone, for example, may hear a knock at his/her door if he/she oversleeps one morning.

 

GOOD JUDGMENT

 

Good neighbours are cautious and exercise good judgment and civility. Arthur Baer says "a good neighbour is a fellow who smiles at you over the back fence but doesn't climb over it" - except in cases of emergencies, I would add.

Good neighbours are friendly but understand that it is not necessary to become bosom friends, calling in the middle of the night, interrogating and burdening one another with emotional and personal problems. They can tell whenever it's time for conversation about the weather or just time to say "have a nice day."

Inspirationist Vishwas Chavan says that "If everyone sweeps their own doorstep, their own neighbourhoods, the world will be a clean, pure, and healthy place for life to prosper". Whatever you make of that statement, be assured that a clean environment is always desirable.

Have you ever driven through some communities and "si how di people dem keep it nice and clean"? "NUH DUTTY UP JAMAICA". Thought I'd just patch that in.

 

MAKE YOUR DAY

 

Overall, good neighbours are nice people to have next door. They make your day. They mow their lawns, trim their hedges, keep their surrounding, including their sidewalk, clean and attractive and always freshen up to make the community proud.

Think it's time for me to try and spruce up my surroundings lest I be viewed as a hypocrite.

Thanks once again (publicly this time) to my neighbour, who, a few months ago, came and helped with our beautification effort. Acts of neighbourliness come from a genuine heart. Helping the neighbour paint his fence, fell a tree, or shovel away dirt or snow not only helps to spruce up the surroundings, but to energise and "longevityise" good relationships! LONG LIVE GOOD NEXT-DOOR NEIGHBOURS!

 

THANKS TO DONORS

 

• Joy, St Elizabeth - for offering a bed

• Glenetta, St Andrew - for offering a bed

• Colin, St Andrew - for offering a queen-size mattress

• Neighbour - for financial contribution

• Sosya, USA - for food items

 

OPPORTUNITIES TO HELP

 

• Monique, Clarendon - Asking neighbours for sewing machine

• Brenda, St Thomas - Asking neighbours for mattress and a dresser. Suffering with back pain

• Marblet, Clarendon - Mother of three asking for food

• Leonie, Kingston - Lost furniture and struggling to recover. Asking for chest of drawers and a stove

• Neighbour - Asking neighbours for a mattress and bed linen

• Neighbour -- Desperately needs food

• Neighbour - Widow is asking for a second-hand bed. The one she sleeps on is not hers and the owner is asking for it.

To help, please call Silton Townsend @ 334-8165, 884-3866 or deposit to acct # 351 044 276 NCB. (Bank routing #: JNCBJMKX) or send donations to HELLO NEIGHBOUR c/o 53 Half-Way-Tree Road, Kingston 10; Paypal/credit card: email: zicron22@yahoo.com; or contact email helloneighbour@yahoo.com. Mr Townsend exclusively manages the collections and distributions mentioned in this column and is neither an employee nor agent of The Gleaner.