Research consistently shows that a neighborhood’s overall well-being and local school performance go hand in hand, and teacher retention plays a key role in school performance. High teacher turnover is linked to lower student achievement, weaker school culture, more disruption, and higher costs for hiring and training replacements. That is one reason we make it a priority to bless our teachers each year with care packages.

Research consistently shows that a neighborhood’s overall well-being and local school performance go hand in hand, and teacher retention plays a key role in school performance. High teacher turnover is linked to lower student achievement, weaker school culture, more disruption, and higher costs for hiring and training replacements. That is one reason we make it a priority to bless our teachers each year with care packages.

Hosting a “Welcome Home Dinner” is a return to the simple practice of sharing stories and images of meaningful moments with others. 

The mediums of visual storytelling have sharply shifted over the last few decades. As a child, I recall any visit to my grandparents in Texas would include my grandfather setting up his slide projector, and click by click, washed-out images of their latest travels would appear on the screen. As I began working with students in churches in the early 1990’s, no summer camp or mission trip was complete without the end of the week video with a montage of pictures that captured the most memorable moments. Spontaneous laughter and applause would punctuate the photos of the highlight reel.

For more than a decade Josh Haynes has been inviting men to the practice of sharing a drink and sharing a conversation about life and faith. Josh shared the origin, “We would pick a Thursday night once a month, everyone would show up on their bike, and we'd ride to a local brewery.”

My mother, Marilyn Mackey, called her mother every Saturday morning for 30 years. “We would call to stay connected and know what was going on in each other's lives.” My mother reminds me, “That was when we paid for long-distance calls too.” But the practice of staying connected begins a generation before her. “My mother’s relationship with her mother, Grandma Miller, was that we saw them every weekend. We would go to their house on the farm and have a meal and play games.”

Role-playing, commonly associated with acting and theater, can be a powerful tool for cultivating connection and understanding with our neighbors. Through the practice of creatively entering an imaginary situation, we can begin to build the necessary skills to respond to challenging interactions. 

“What practice do people need to love their neighbors and neighborhoods during an election?” I asked former Englewood Mayor and City Council member Linda Olson. She replied clearly and concisely, “Civility.” The following principles about the practice of civility are excerpts from a work by Linda for the Colorado Municipal League. She generously shared her wisdom about what is needed to cultivate civility.

Providing meals is a nourishing way to love your neighbors. It may be for a family welcoming home a new child or welcoming a new neighbor to the neighborhood.

As I was growing up, the smell of turpentine and the whir of a sewing machine filled my senses. My mom was an artist and my husband David’s mom was a musician. His home was alive with the beautiful sound of Bach flowing from his mother’s piano. Being raised in creative homes, we learned the value of both artist and art.

Public transportation provides a practical way to know your neighbors and neighborhood. It is a different method of moving around the city. For many it is essential as it eliminates the cost of owning and operating an automobile.

Wandering is a counter script to the often overly scheduled lives centered around efficiency and productivity. Wandering is a practice that cultivates curiosity, looking to be interrupted by the world around you. When we are willing to wander, we have the possibility of being present to what is around us.

Standing in the awkward is the practice that tells our neighbors they are worth our discomfort. On the other side, we may get more comfortable, or at least get more comfortable with being uncomfortable.

People who live in the neighborhood who may attend different local congregations or participate in various expressions of the Church, can come together to pray in and for the neighborhood. The simple practice of praying in a park will help guide your prayers for people and ground your prayers in place.  

Gratitude for delivery drivers cultivates hospitality for all those who serve us in unseen ways.

Asking a neighbor for help is being aware of our needs and one of our greatest needs is to live in community. Asking for help is a practice that cultivates humility in us.

Showing up and saying you love to watch a kid from your neighborhood play sports, at any level, cultivates joy. It is a playful practice of showing love for your neighbors, and builds confidence and connection with their kids.

The place you call home has a history. The geography where you live has a story. To know your neighborhood begins with the practice of knowing the history of your neighborhood. Learning the history of the place you and your neighbors live is a spiritual practice.

We must know our neighbors to love our neighbors. Only in doing life together do we make visible the heart of Jesus to our neighbors. Coffee Friday might be the practice for you to get to know your neighbors. Or, replace coffee with something else that might unite your neighbors. I bet on coffee.

The practice of freudenfreude is a parallel practice to empathy. Empathy is feeling compassion about others pain. Freudenfreude is connecting and celebrating others joy.

A lemonade stand is a nostalgic way to connect with neighbors. It is a playful summer practice to be present in your neighborhood.