Connecting Neighbor to Neighbor

By Alica Whitmore, 3rd-year Urban Neighbor in north Minneapolis

I became an Urban Neighbor in 2008, hoping to have a positive impact on my community and to learn more about urban poverty. Initially, I was surprised by my neighbors’ unwillingness to build relationships with me. But the longer I live here, the more I understand. When I was new, I was a liability to my neighbors, a potential waste of their time. Why build a relationship only to have that person leave in a few months? Now that I’ve been here for three years, I am just starting to build real and lasting relationships with my neighbors. 

I’m learning and have been amazed at the importance that openness and flexibility, especially at inconvenient times, play in being a good neighbor. For example, I’ve noticed that my neighbor only needs to borrow my cell phone when I’m running late or trying to give my baby a bath. Life is not convenient, especially in the city! If I want to know my neighbors and be a positive contributor to our block, I have to allow time in my life to be inconvenienced, to simply be around and available. In the end, those minor inconveniences are the foundation for strong relationships in my community.             

Find out more or become an Urban Neighbor.

How do you respond when you're "inconvenienced" by someone? Have you ever been an inconvenience?