Stories Everywhere

On my street alone while I walked an easy mile, I heard or saw several stories One couple, natives to Massachusetts, in mid-life are moving to Tennessee and have already sold their home to a neighbor who has sold his home. Two  or three stories from that event alone with the bigger one being there is no backlog of houses available in Springfield, Massachusetts for sale at this moment. If you see one come up in your neighborhood that you like, go for it. Another home has added a handicapped ramp to the front door and that is a big story.  Our neighborhood sponsored a pumpkin carving contest and the pumpkins grace the pillars at the street’s entrance. And a couple have he wow factor.

The big story is that neighbors cared. Over five hundred children, and sincerely less than fifty were from the neighborhood, traveled our few streets and got their sugar ransom. The bigger story is the inflow of parents following their children to ensure their safety and the joy of watching the wonderful creative costumes floating in the night. Family life is alive in the U.S. A car broke down on our street and our neighbors helped change a tire for the teenager. This ordinary kindness is a wonder to see these days. Twenty trees were removed from one home and the cleared land now gave the homeowner a back yard never envisioned before. The story is home owners are home more and taking a deeper interest in their ‘digs.’

Colorful autumn decorations prevail contrasted with the dried leaves falling in a rainstorm of crinkling. So many stories. I could write a crime story around each event even if it is a happy story or I could write a philosophical argument supporting the production of joy walking in my neighborhood gives.

K. B. Pellegrino, author