Musings on a Sunday afternoon. . .

I love my neighbor. I'm not speaking metaphorically. I'm speaking literally. My neighbor across the street is the sweetest friend. She came over for some help a couple of months ago after she found out I sew when I graced her garage sale and rummaged through her masses of material. Ever since we've been popping back and forth.
I sent Jessica over last night to help her put up her Christmas tree. With problems in her family all around, she almost didn't want to put one up at all. So I was happy to lend her my little helper to make sure it happened. Anything to liven up her spirits. Jess got to play with their Wii in exchange for her services and is anxious to go back and finish "helping".
She came by this afternoon again needing help. I was so pleased she trusts me enough to ask. She offered to pay me - I'm getting tired of that. How am I to get any blessings when people keep trying to pay me to help them? I guess it's hard to ask and accept help these days.
I may find a way to refuse her money. I don't want it, really. I'm happy to have a friend, that's all.
When my mom had to go back to work, we moved into town. Around the corner lived a girl who was in my first grade class. Just so happened she was also a member of my church. We became best of friends. It also worked out that her family had a sibling to match in age almost every sibling in my family. Four out of Five of our kids became best friends with theirs.
Since Mom worked, we ended up at their house after school almost daily for years. Luann graciously took us in, no questions asked along with her 7 kids that she already had. Imagine up to 12 kids or more running around under one roof, all playing their own games. Sometimes, Luann would let me and her daughter help her with the various crafts she was working on. She taught me how to crochet and a little bit how to knit. Back then, it wasn't a play date. It wasn't day care, and it was rarely announced. We simply dropped in whenever our hearts desired.
It wasn't until almost nine years ago when we learned that Luann was killed in a car accident that Mom expressed to me her gratitude for Luann watching out for her kids when we were younger. I'm sure Mom would have paid her if she could have, but she really didn't have it and Luann never asked for it. We were friends and neighbors. I miss those days. I miss Luann and I hope she is being justly rewarded for her kindness and service on the other side. She may not have been a perfect woman in some regards, but her door was always open to me and my family. For that I am truly grateful and I love her dearly.
I think sometimes it's hard to find a good neighbor. One that you feel so comfortable around that you can just drop by anytime. Or at least it seems more rare than it once did. So this Thanksgiving, I'm grateful for good neighbors.