hello neighbor!

so in class today, we talked about neighbors. i guess in france they have like "neighbor month" when everyone from their quarter gets together for a party...

but... i guess it's not common for neighbors to become friends here. because we were asked what we look for in a neighbor and i said "someone who is friendly and invites me over for dinner" (limited french knowledge, ok!) and Madame said that it isn't common in French because they are so private with their lives. they will be polite and say "bonjour" in passing but they retreat to their homes. which, made me very sad.

thinking about my parents and how they are friends with all of our neighbors, even some who are in their 30s! and they are truly good friends. there is no boundary line and they don't have guards up. for a while i like that french people were more private... "the european way" but after really thinking about it... it really stifles community. yeah, there are a lot of idiots in America, and there are superficial people, but there is an easiness when communicating with each other that builds community and crosses lines. i like this. i like that my neighbor just walks through our yard and knocks on our back door with his little kid in a superman costume, or that my mom yells things to "bella", the neighbors dog out her back window, or that my dad exchanges tools with guys in the neighborhood, or that my parents have newlyweds over for a campfire in the summer, or that my neighbor brought me over gourmet coffee because he didn't like it, or that my family makes christmas cookies and goodies and we bring them to our neighbors just because we want to. i feel like this is the way things were supposed to be...