One of the best things that ever happened to me was my move from New York to North Carolina in 1993. I had already lived in a lot of great places, but with three young children, I was ready to find a final destination, and Greensboro seemed to be a dream come true.
And over the years, I have fallen for other cities, and could have moved again, but here is my lesson learned: it is very important to love where you live. I know that some places seem more lovable than others…but if you’re thinking that you have found a hometown, there are some basics for falling in love with where you live and the benefits of making that relationship strong and lasting.
Here are some pointers:
* Spend time together. Don’t always be dreaming about where you’re going to go to get away from where you live. If you spend all of your spare time and savings traveling to other places, how will your hometown survive? If you spend some of that extra time and money where you live, the local choices will get better and you’ll feel like you’re on vacation when you explore your own hometown…don’t laugh!! I’ve witnessed that happening right here in Greensboro.
* Really truly get to know each other. The benefits of knowing your hometown intimately cannot be overstated. Learn the history. Explore the neighborhoods. Read the local daily and weekly newspapers, and if you’re fortunate enough to have them, the local magazines. In Greensboro, even the Business Journal is full of human interest and bios and information that everyone needs to know. And it’s all at your fingertips!
* Invest more than just time in the relationship with where you live. Put your money where your heart is. This is the fun pointer, because it involves shopping, eating and drinking. Go out and become a regular at a restaurant. Find your own “Cheers” bar, where everybody (or at least the bartender) knows your name. Shop small and support the little businesses that cannot make it without your support. Eat at the local restaurants and diners (not the chains!). Check out the breweries and distilleries, and even if you don’t drink, these local gems often offer other forms of entertainment. Drink local coffee and tea. Support these small businesses, or they won’t make it…that’s guaranteed! And what they give back is a sense of community and place and belonging.
* Walk your neighborhood often. If you don’t have a walkable neighborhood, find one (or more than one) to adopt and try to walk every day. We all know the physical benefits of walking, but there are emotional benefits as well. Watch for the children, become familiar with the cats and dogs and gardens and yard art. Seeing a neighborhood through the seasons, watching the trees change and the flowers bloom and fade does something good for the soul. Hint: the best times to walk are when the sun is rising or when it is setting. The magical light and shadows and the impact of seeing folks turn their lights off and on with dawn and dusk give a sense of rhythm to the days.
* Make sure that some of the time you spend loving your community is spent volunteering. Helping to support a cause that you believe in will strengthen your relationship with where you live. And try listening to the critics who have valid issues with the not so great aspects of your city’s history, or water quality, or downtown parking. There is always room for improvement…even in the best of places. Do your part to help make things better. One return on your investment is feeling that you are pulling your weight as a citizen.
So you may be thinking, “But Greensboro is so EASY to love…what about places that are NOT?” You may not remember that in 1993, Greensboro was going through a period of self-doubt. Some city critics could not stop focusing on every little problem or fault and never offered reasonable solutions or saw the little great things and the wonderful small things. But here we are, 27 years later with a very different city! The transformation wasn’t easy and it isn’t perfect, but it happened. And I’ve seen many other seemingly unloved towns where a small group of determined people decided that they were going to make their town or city lovable and a fine place to live. It’s amazing what time, determination, and commitment can do!
Weekend driving trips are second only to learning everything about what is in my own back yard. Greensboro and the Triad are growing and changing and renewing in a way that no one would have predicted two decades ago.