GoodThings: Guide to good stories--tales worth telling.

				"If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hours." - Henry David Thoreau			Get Involved
	December 1, 2008

search site


	PAPER GREETING CARDS! sell our cards buy our cards past goodletters subscribe directory of goodthings send us your good tell a friend link to us

The Root of All Good
by Amy Gautschi
Posted July 26, 2001

Mindfully awaiting her child's arrival, an expectant mother strengthens her commitment to service and firms up her own foothold in her community.

NEW Reader Responses are a goodthing! Join Olive Ybanez of Quezon City, Philippines, and contribute your thoughts to the conversation.

Fellow GoodLetter readers,

It started out small. One day I decided to plant a garden in our backyard, and my husband began to paint our weathered fence. We're renters, not owners, and were growing tired of waiting for the day when we would be able to buy something, so we began turning our house into a place we could call home.

But it's not just our house that we've become committed to -- it's our neighborhood and our neighbors, not to mention our city. The more people we get to know here and the more friends we make, the more we grow interested in local politics and come to care about what happens to our community. For example, a newspaper article about the future of dog parks in our city means something more to us now that we use those parks and have friends that value and enjoy them as well.

We've also taken on new responsibilities: I started volunteering at the city's animal shelter, and my husband has been volunteering for a nonprofit art gallery. Being involved in this way has given each of us an increased sense of purpose and strengthened our ties to the place we live.

But it's not just the things that you can add to your resume that matter. I'm happy to be able to help out an elderly woman I see struggling with her bag. I know I've done something good when I knock on a neighbor's door and let her know her car lights are still on. I feel I've done my part when I find a lost dog wandering in the neighborhood and return him to his relieved owner.

No doubt it works the other way, too. As we come to care about the place we live, the people here grow to know and care about us. It feels good to know that when we're out of town, our neighbors are picking up our mail and keeping an eye on our house for us. It makes me smile when my husband and I go to our favorite Indian restaurant just across the bridge, and the owner already knows what I'll be ordering. I'm excited when I see that new trees have been planted on our street by people in our neighborhood. We beam with delight when a neighbor congratulates us on my pregnancy.

This symbiotic relationship we're building with our community is exciting and inspiring. As I watch new life sprouting up in my garden, I think about all the possibilities for laying down more roots to this place and growing along with it -- other projects I'll undertake, other neighbors I will get to know, the friendships we will cultivate. And as I think about the baby growing in my womb, I am elated knowing we will be bringing a new person -- a new participant -- into this community, a community he'll call his hometown.

Amy Gautschi (e-mail Amy)

Amy is a regular GoodThings contributor, a magnet for lost dogs, and a supporter of underdogs. She, her husband, and their dog Hurley live in Seattle and are expecting their first baby (a boy) in November. [ Check out a few of her favorite goodthings ]

[what did you think of this story?]

TALK ABOUT IT
What are the little things you do to establish roots and help to create a positive community where you live? Share your stories.

LEARN ABOUT IT
We spend about 35% less time visiting with friends than we did thirty years ago. Wish you knew why good roots seem so hard to come by? Check out Robert Putnam's Bowling Alone: The Collapse and Revival of American Community.

DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT
An easy way to make your neighborhood feel more like home? Try saying hello to a neighbor you've never met. Greet your bus driver, bank teller, or grocery store clerk. You see them all the time -- why shouldn't they be a personal part of your world?

One step to establishing roots in a constructive way is to first identify what it is you're passionate about. Is it early children's education? Animal welfare? The environment? The elderly? Decide what it is and then seek out related organizations near you. Have you tried Volunteer Match? They can quickly give you an amazing head start.

Readers Respond

Dear GoodThings,

While I was growing up, I remember feeling a strong sense of community. Whether I was in my own neighborhood, visiting my grandparents, or visiting a friend's place, I had that secured feeling that there are people around me who cared. Everybody knew everyone: who gave birth, whose child is graduating, getting married, or having a birthday. You could count on them for help if you need it. If there was something that needed to be done, you could be sure it was going to end up a community thing.

Unfortunately, with the change in lifestyle, we often feel alone in the middle of a crowd. We are nearly non-existent in the eyes of our neighbors. People think "minding your own business" was such a great and polite thing. I think it just hastens the shift to invisibility and operating on automatic.

The need to connect is very basic in the make up of all things that live. It is what makes us grow and become better individuals. The people and places that we have touched with our wisdom, love, and concern are the stick by which the kind of person we are and our quality of life are measured.

Olive Ybanez
Quezon City, Philippines

Dear GoodThings,

I loved this article. The pregnant woman who wrote it is the quintessential positive and proactive voice for young women like myself. It delivered the kind of constructive message that folks in our parents' generation might have gotten from a church or synagogue, but is less frequently available or acceptable in this day and age of spiritual autonomy. (Not that I am complaining!) The truth is, these days, there are lots of ways to put the community back in to living. We should all put some thought in to the topic.

Brava! Keep it up. This is the kind of voice we need to hear. Constructive message: no strings attached.

Jennifer G.
Los Angeles, CA

Dear GoodThings,

I read your goodthings, and I am really happy for your family. However, this mail is only to congratulate you on your pregnancy. I wish your baby boy a happy life in your community.

Efua Atta-Quayson
Ghana (West Africa)

Dear GoodThings,

I loved the article. I saw some of myself and the few people I call good friends in it.

Thanks, and keep on publishing.

John Miller
Fort Worth, Texas

Want to share your thoughts or ideas with other people who care about good things? Send 'em our way.

DID YOU KNOW...?
GoodThings makes and sells recycled-paper greeting cards!
"Inner Dog" and our 11 other Stamp Connecting cards are just a few. Click it to see more in our store!

WE NEED YOUR HELP
Buy a few cards today and feel good knowing your purchase helps us continue to spread the word about ideas and actions that are making the world a better place.