It was one of those wonderful summer nights. Warm but not too hot. Nice breeze, no bugs, and Dale and I sat out on our back deck talking.  Soon the couple who lives behind us came out to chat, then the family a few doors down joined the group. Five families and two hours later, we all finally retired to our homes. We have lived in this house for almost  four years and have never spoken more than a few words to these people. We saw each other coming and going, and would maybe wave while doing yard work, but we never actually had conversations.  Over the next few days, I noticed people in our neighborhood outside, walking in the evenings, gardening, even just sitting and chatting.

Why were we all of a sudden becoming such a community? One afternoon as my neighbor and I were watching our kids splash around, we were talking about our husbands and their jobs, how both families were trying to save money and swapping tips on grocery deals when it dawned on me: the economic crisis was actually helping us create a community.

Families are trying to save money. We are not packing our kids’ schedules with camps, classes and clubs, which leaves more time for impromptu firefly catching. We are eating at home, which means more backyard grilling conversations. We are finding ourselves stepping out from behind the windshield of the gas guzzling SUV and walking to the park, which means seeing more of our neighbors.

Please don’t get me wrong, the economic meltdown has devastated our little part of America.  There have been jobs lost, homes foreclosed on, even families torn apart. But if there is a silver lining to this storm cloud, it is that we are returning to the simple things in life.  We are realizing the material things are fleeting, and it is the relationships we have that get us through the day.

I am dying to know if you have noticed any positive changes come about with the changes in the economy. Please share your thoughts!