What the Public School System is teaching me: Part 2 - Little things matter

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There is a little rectangular framed poster in the front foyer of my kids' public school.  I wonder sometimes who has noticed it and how many people actually take the time to read it.

I did.

The poster is about how to build community.  Whether it is in my church or in the school, amongst my stay at home moms or in the news, I hear the same cry:  we need to build community, people are disconnected, we need to make sure people are heard.

But...how?  where does one start even if one wanted to?  Sometimes life seems to work against this.  I might see the benefits of building community but while I take care of the kids, get groceries, deal with work, resolve conflicts with the in laws, pay my bills and the million other things we deal with on a daily basis...let's be honest.  Most of us just hopes that someone else would have the time to build this community many of us agree in principle is needed!

What I like about this poster is its simplicity.  Here are some of my favourites:

1.  Know your neighbours:  I don't think we need to become best friends with house # 12 although that would be nice.  But how about start by just finding out their names and who is in the family?  How about next time you bump into each other on the driveway you say Hello and Introduce yourself by name?  After all....little things matter

2.  Honor elders:  this is one I have been learning lately.  There seems to be more and more elderly in my community - or at least, I have taken notice of them lately.  And honoring them might be as simple as taking the time to talk with them, to share with them community resources they may not be aware of, or simply helping them translate things into their mother language.  It could even be simply acknowledging their presence when you pass by them.  How about asking them for advice for a change?  You might be surprised...  After all...little things matter

3.  Bake extra and share:  I know you might think "that is easy for you being a baker" - but I know many people bake.  And if you don't bake you might cook or shop for things.  The point is not to bake, but to think of the community when you get something.  The other day I found 2 Starbucks coupons....at $2 a specialty coffee I could not resist using them both...at the same time.  But...what would I do with the second cup of coffee???  How about cheering some mom up in the community during pick up time?  Or, as you pass by the local bakery, grocery store or Tim hortons to get special treats for the kids snacks...how about getting something extra for the administrative staff at the school, your kids' teachers and/or your neighbours?  Caring doesn't have to cost an arm and a leg.  After all...little things matter

4.  Ask for help when you need it:  at first sight this might not seem a smart way to promote community ... but...think about it.  Community involves relationships doesn't it?  And relationships should be a two way thing right?  We have grown up in a society where independence is praised so highly that we have lost a sense of humbleness over the fact that, in truth, life is designed so that we live it with others...and part of that living is learning to be co-dependent at some level.  There is something freeing when you are able to think of people in your 'hood' whom you can call to see if you can drop the kids off for a couple of hours, or whom you can call to ask for help with the broken furnace or TV.  There is people out there whom you are connected with!  The hardest part is not to find these people.  The hardest part is to go past our stubborn self sufficient egos and pick up the phone to ask the question.

Sometimes thinking big makes a task too big to face.  Perhaps a little poster in the corner of a little school can serve as a reminder to many of us that it will take many little things to create community, instead of one big task.  Perhaps pick just one thing...perhaps just make it a point in the next 3 months to get to know the names of 3 parents whom you see every day during pick up time.  Or make it a point to introduce yourself by name to the neighbour on #12.  Or next time you stop by Tim Hortons get an extra box of 10 Timbits for the neighbours.  Whatever it is, remember...

It's the little things that often leave a big impact in people's lives

This poster got it right.


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