2022 Fall Home and Garden

2022 Fall Home & Garden LINCOLN DAILY NEWS Sept. 23, 2022 Page 25 Be there for your neighbors. Being there for your neighbor means helping them out in good times and bad times. As the well-known State Farm slogan says “Like a good neighbor State Farm is there.” Similarly, we should try to be there for neighbors when they are going through challenging times. Lend a helping hand. Being a good neighbor may mean lending neighbors a hand when you see a need. For example, you have a neighbor that is sick, elderly or disabled you could offer to mow their yard, trim their hedges, cook them a meal or do something that just makes their life easier. You might offer an overwhelmed mother and/ or father of young children free childcare for a few hours. It will allow the parent some “me” time to relax. Organize a neighborhood service project. While get togethers are fun, a service project can create a real sense of community. As a group, you could help take care of an elderly neighbor’s yard and put up their Christmas lights. You could also do something for a disabled or ill neighbor who needs some help with projects. Make sure your home has good curb appeal. That does not mean you have to spend lots of money on landscaping or painting your house. However, you should keep the area in front of your house clean. As Daniel Bortz says in an article about how to be a great neighbor, “Just one ugly home in a community can reduce property values for the entire neighborhood. Hence, you don’t want to become known as the owner of ‘that ugly house’ [and be] the one with knee-high grass, overflowing gutters, dirty windows, peeling paint or toys scattered across the front yard.” Be respectful of your neighbor’s personal space, personal business and personal property. If you borrow something from a neighbor, take care of it and make sure to give it back. If you want to stop by, consider calling them first. If your neighbors are having problems, do not gossip about them. Communicating with neighbors when another neighbor has lost a family member is fine. Spreading rumors about them is not. As the Golden Rule says, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” Along with being respectful of your neighbors, you should be considerate. When you are having people over, make sure they do not block other people’s driveways. When you are hosting a party or playing music, watch CONTINUED u