new neighbors

                                                

Today is a great day! My little website has already been hit 536 times today, and it is only 1:30pm!!! So far it has been hit 2,887 times in the past month!  I feel very appreciative and hope I have helped a few people get through their day. This information made start thinking about something that my family and I discussed over our Christmas dinner.

We decided that with technology, a new type of "neighbor" has emerged and is rapidly evolving everyday! Expanding just like the strange life form in the old movie The Blob (I know I am dating myself).

Let me explain what I mean. When I was a kid, I lived in a neighborhood where the houses were lined up one-by-one no more than a driveway apart. We (adults and children) were always outside. The men would joke that if you wanted to hang out with someone, all you had to do was open the hood of your car. Within twenty minutes you would have six guys standing with beers, surrounding you, explaining how you should solve your latest car dilemma.  The kids didn't have “play dates” - you just went outside, and within five minutes you were playing hide and seek with ten kids. We had block parties on the 4th of July and Christmas parties with the neighbors. It was very Norman Rockwell. Forty years later, these people are still my best friends. I feel lucky that our small houses that were so close together provided me with the opportunity to experience these most important friendships.

Years later, when I moved into a larger house with Michael and the boys, I worried that I was depriving them the opportunity to live close to others and experience the same type of friendships. However, as much as I miss the old neighborhood, I also notice that a new type of neighbor is emerging. Not one that lives next door or down the street, but one that is online. One that may have the same issues that I have or one that is experiencing the same feelings I have about my current "cross to bear". This is true for me and millions of people around the world! 

Currently, there are people in Malaysia, Austria, Russia and even Latvia (I'll have to look that one up!) reading Everyday Highs and Lows! Wow! What a rush that is, to be a “neighbor” to someone in a country half way around the world.

People are Googling daily and finding their new neighbor. People are connecting across time zones, racial divides and language barriers. 

It is so exciting to be part of this and I truly can't wait to "meet" more of my new neighbors. 

Thanks for logging on and Feel free to tell your "neighbors"!