Last Saturday, I went to a football game with my sister and her friends. We tailgated with a bunch of other Chiefs fans. I met a mom there who has a daughter the same age as mine (14.) She shared a story with me that really made me think.

This mom lived in a neighborhood similar to a lot of ours in suburbia. There were families of all age ranges. Her neighbor next door happened to be an older divorced woman. She and her daughter had talked to the woman a few times, waved to her when they were all outside, and things such as that. Well, one day, she noticed she had not seen her in a while and thought that she might want to check on her. The thought passed and so did more time. A few days later, she came home to find the police and an ambulance in front of her neighbor’s house. She learned later that the neighbor across the street (also another older woman) had noticed the mail in her neighbor’s mailbox was piling up and called the police to go check up on her. When the police came to the mom’s door, they informed her that the woman had passed away two weeks ago. They found her sitting in a chair that could be seen if you were standing at the front door of the house.

Well, you can imagine how the mom felt in that moment. I felt it just hearing her story. She has since tried to find the woman’s family and tried to learn all she could about her. The guilt she feels is overwhelming. But, this is a story that could happen to any of us. I, too, wave to my neighbors or talk to them when I see them outside. I drive my car into the garage when I get home. It is a rare thing nowadays to have tight neighborhood groups of friends, although I do know a few (mostly with moms that do not work.) So, what I ask of you is this:

Make a point of checking on your neighbors- especially those who you haven’t seen in a while, or those neighbors that don’t seem to get many visitors (this woman was a person that no one visited.) If you notice a mailbox overflowing with mail, call the police and have them do a check on the person that lives there. They will be more than happy to do this.

Halloween is a perfect time to start! While taking your kiddos trick-or-treating, take notice of any elderly people in your neighborhood. Introduce your family to neighbors you have not met. Notice if any of those people seem lonely (they might be extra-talkative) and make a point of keeping a mental note about them for the future. The mom I met tailgating talked about how she wanted to take some brownies over to her neighbor, but her daughter kept eating them before they got them over to her. Just a little act of kindness could make a HUGE difference in someone’s life. So, from this day on, I plan on being extra-mindful of those around me, and I will take a little extra time to get to know the neighbors.