Neighbours are doing it again!

I remember sitting late in the evening last spring, reading Great Canadian Neighbour Contest entries. I was overwhelmed by the simple descriptions of profound acts of care and compassion that populate our neighbourhoods. The remarkable nature of my experience was that I was reading stories that happen anonymously to most of us, quietly nestled between the dizzying frenzy of life as we know it. Somehow I was the fortunate recipient of all this life-giving news.

As I sit here tonight,

reading entries in "year two" of the Contest, all the feelings of being overwhelmed have returned. If only I could tell you every one of the stories I am reading. They are hilarious, heart-warming and everything inbetween. As I read them, I feel more and more alive, realizing that people do extraordinary things for each other in ordinary ways. Here are a few...

NEIGHBOUR BECOMES CRIMESTOPPER "M. is always keeping an eye on things for us. One time, she knew we were away, and there was a Crimestoppers commercial filming on our driveway but we had forgotten to tell her this was happening. She went out on our driveway, took everyone's license number, asked to see their police badges and kept and eye on everything, just to make sure they weren't stealing anything. She and her husband are fantastic neighbours!"

NO CAR GUY HERE "R. is a retired mechanic that lives next door to us. I believe God put us here because I am a hopeless handyman and/or car guy. Whether at 7:00am in -40 C when we had a flat tire...to helping me paint our living room when my wife gave me the job on my week off. R. is a great friend and a wonderful neighbor!"