Many people have lamented and written on the changing of American neighborhoods. It can be hard to find friendly neighbors and a feeling of community that many of us remember from our youth. As single parents, I think we really need to have neighbors we can trust and those we can turn to when we need a hand, or just need to feel safe and supported in our neighborhoods.
Even if you manage to get just one trustworthy neighbor as part of your “support team” it can make a huge difference. A great neighbor can provide our kids with a safe place to go if we are not home, they can be someone to gather our mail and feed our pets when we are away for the weekend, and it is nice knowing that someone is looking out for us in terms of safety and support. Of course, you may find that in order to get to know your neighbors and figure out who can be trusted, you will have to be a friendly, trustworthy neighbor yourself.
Take your time to get to know your neighbors and do not feel rushed or desperate to connect. You will want to make sure that people can, indeed, be trusted to look after the well-being of your child and children and it is best to get to know them in a safe, neighborly way before asking them to do anything major. Find out if they have children themselves, how long they have been in the neighborhood and other details about their character. You may find that by reaching and out and offering to help them; by being “neighborly” you will soon discover who the friendly, trustworthy neighbors are (not to mention those who are single parent and child friendly) and who the neighbors are that you would rather not have as part of your life and support team.