Woman welcomes neighbors no matter their background

“Won’t you be my neighbor?”

The words were chirped by Mr. Rogers. Now his animated predecessor, Daniel Tiger, sings the greeting to a wide audience of young, impressionable viewers. My kid gets it. So, at what point did we (adults) stop living by these words?

I moved into my neighborhood in November and, craving community and neighbors I can wave to, I toured the front doors of my fellow homeowners. I would say half were unenthusiastic about answering the door. How did we get this way?

I’ll admit that the doorbell brings me anxiety, too, but mostly because I’ve been the victim of a ding-dong home burglary in the past. This is when crooks ring your doorbell and if you don’t answer they take that as a sign that you’re not home and use that as an invitation to rifle through your belongings. My mistake was, ironically enough, not answering the door to a criminal. Or at the very least telling him to kick dirt.

I’ve tried different neighborly tactics. I’ll see someone walking by and stop to say ‘hi’ and they usually keep walking after parroting a quick ‘hi’ back to me. Are we weary of people? Disengaged with real life? Tired of people disappointing us? I don’t get it, but I’m willing to keep trying.

Given today’s Daily Dose of Kindness, I’m also forced to imagine what it would be like to move into a neighborhood with a more homogeneous profile and try to make friends. Refugees, immigrants, and even persons of color who are natural-born citizens of their country face this anxiety all the time.

Esther deGroot of Winnipeg, Manitoba recognized this anxiety – and the dialogue around the world about immigration – and did something about it. Inspired by a church in Virginia, she copied its signs that read: “No matter where you are from, we’re glad you’re our neighbor,” and put one in her front yard. The message is written in three languages.

Esther old CBC News that she noticed even Canada’s public dialoge about immigration had turned fearful.

“I think if you put a sign like this on your lawn you’re letting people know that … that you’ve worked through that yourself and you’re able to talk about that and share your ideas with others that you’re going to be a welcoming space for people.”

Soon, neighbors wanted one. So she began selling them. The money goes to an an organization that helps immigrants and refugees get settled in their new home.

I’m work-shopping ideas for my yard. Maybe: “Please be my neighbor?”

You can hear Colleen O’Brien’s “Daily Dose of Kindness” segment every morning at 7:30 a.m. on KIRO Radio 97.3 FM

Follow @http://twitter.com/ColleenKIROFM