Community Musings

You can find community everywhere — even in the dirt!The sky was gray and it was a little chilly for California, but my daughter and I headed to Taylor Street Farm on a recent Monday afternoon. This little gem is tucked just off Highway 87 and is run by Garden to Table Silicon Valley, a volunteer-run nonprofit that loves educating and building communi

The power of a simple connectionHave you ever received a funny text that made you laugh out loud? Or a heartfelt note in the mail that made you smile? Or a friendly hello from a stranger that prompted a happy response? If so, you have experienced the power of a simple connection. And yet, we often don’t take a few moments to reach

People need peopleSimply put, people need people. This is one of the conclusions of “The Global State of Social Connections,” a research study by Meta and Gallup in 2022.

A community rescue storyNeighbors come together to rescue a stranded possum.

A dress finds its way homeMy grandmother had a beautiful child’s lace dress that belonged to her mother and had been preserved in a lovely frame. It hung in my grandparent’s house for many years and then adorned the walls of my mom’s home for many more years.

National Night Out — the coolestHave you ever heard of National Night Out? This annual event, aimed at fostering community bonds and strengthening police-community partnerships, had been on my radar for a while. Yet, it wasn't until this year that I truly experienced its magic firsthand.

Creating community — one wave at a timeAs I’m writing this, the sun is just coming up and warming the sky in California. And a surfer at Waddell Beach in Santa Cruz, CA is pulling on a wetsuit and getting ready to ride a very special surfboard.

10 ways to create more community in your neighborhoodI recently watched How to turn your Neighborhood into a Village, a 16 minute video with permaculture instructor Andrew Millison who journeys to Portland, Oregon to talk with architect Mark Lakeman, founder of Communitecture Architecture and the City Repair Project. The video shows a neighborhood in

A bucket of chalkIn the never ending quest to keep our garage clean, I stumbled across a dusty old bucket of sidewalk chalk. When our daughters were little, they loved to make cute chalk drawings on the sidewalk in front of our house.

Community clean up!Have you ever felt that wonderful sense of accomplishment that leaves you smiling yet exhausted? My husband and I recently experienced that after we participated in a community clean up near our home. We’ve done creek clean ups before and they have been fulfilling, but this one felt especially invig

Umuganda: Coming together in common purposeCan you imagine a day once a month that an entire country comes together for a common purpose? Well, that’s exactly what happens in Rwanda, and it has transformed the capital of Kigali into the cleanest and greenest city in Africa — it’s known as Umuganda. Umuganda is a Kinyarwanda word that transla

The whole world in our lil’ 10 blocksI’m a believer in taking care of your little corner of the world. I believe if everyone tended to the 10 blocks closest to them, goodness would ripple out and swirl across the globe.

The power of a shared mealI love family dinners. I love friend dinners.

If you care about your community, then cast your vote!If you care about your community, vote! If you care about your neighborhood, vote! If you care about your family, vote! If you care about your friends, vote! If you care about children, vote! If you care about retirees, vote! If you care about yourself, vote! If you care about education, vote! If yo

The Can ManIt’s Sunday and that means that we will have a visit from the “Can Man.” He arrives in worn, dirty clothes every Sunday afternoon on his scrappy bike and collects the aluminum cans we put on the curb each week.

The Good Juju TreeOur neighborhood is filled with big, beautiful trees that line our streets. In the fall, they burst into bright colors but our friend and neighbor, Karen Adamski (aka ShamaMama), has transformed the tree in front of her house into a brilliant array of color year round.

Creating community during COVIDWhen shelter in place was announced in March, I don’t think anyone had any idea how the coming months would unfold. There have been ups and downs, good news and bad news — across our blue planet, throughout our vast countries and within our little neighborhoods.

Random acts of kindnessThe holidays are behind us, but one of our favorite family movies is “Love Actually.” The opening scene of the movie takes place at Heathrow airport, where they filmed real people greeting each other with hugs, joy and tears.

Showing upHave you heard the famous quote: “Showing up is 80 percent of life. Sometimes it’s easier to hide home in bed.

The Good Act TheoryHave you ever heard of the broken windows theory? According to Wikipedia, it is a criminological theory that states that visible signs of crime, anti-social behavior, and civil disorder create an urban environment that encourages further crime and disorder, including serious crime. Well I would like

'Tis the season“We got a donation; we are close to making our goal!” This was the cheery and excited text I got from my friend, who is the executive director of a local nonprofit. It was a burst of brightness in otherwise dark times.

The magic of a hand-written noteI don’t know about you but when I open my mailbox, it’s usually not very exciting. There are almost always coupons, maybe a magazine and possibly a few miscellaneous bills.

A click away from a cleaner communityHave you heard the term citizen science? According to Wikipedia, citizen science is scientific research conducted, in whole or in part, by amateur scientists. Citizen science is sometimes described as “public participation in scientific research.

A resolution for your communityIt’s almost 2022, which means it’s time for the annual ritual of making new year’s resolutions. Of course, not everyone makes resolutions (including myself) but most people take time to ponder the past and contemplate the future.

Vote for the community YOU want“Volunteering is the ultimate exercise in democracy. You vote in elections once a year, but when you volunteer, you vote every day about the kind of community you want to live in.

My Uncle Stu (or elcnu uts)My Uncle Stu can talk backward. He’s the only person I know who can do this and it’s hilarious.

The Magic of Music“Music produces a kind of pleasure which human nature cannot do without.” ― Confucius I saw the magic of music right in my front yard.

Everyone doing their bestI was able spend Mother’s Day at California’s Great America with more than 500 amazing moms for the American Cancer Society’s Courageous Kids Day. It was a day when everyone was doing their best.

NestingHave you heard the Chinese proverb “One generation plants the trees and another gets the shade?” I’m grateful that when our neighborhood was built in the 1950s, they had the foresight to plant trees in front of every house. Now our neighborhood is lucky enough to be graced with gorgeous elm trees.

Good KarmaI find it heartwarming when I can trace a web of good karma in the world, where one kindness leads to another and influences even more goodness. When my husband’s mother passed away in 2011, he had to clean out his parent’s home and one thing that he was unable to give away was his Dad’s old bike.

Take What You NeedWith the election around the corner and the global pandemic continuing to impact our world, it’s hard to know what we need these days to get by. But last week, I got an email from my friend, Michelle, who runs My Village Well and it filled me right up, so I wanted to share it with you.

Letting people helpI remember years ago a friend was sick and I was making dinner for her family. My mom commented, “That’s so nice she’s letting you help.

Friends+nature=perfect comboJohn Muir once said, “Going to the mountains is like going home.” And I have found this to be more true than ever during the last year.

To all the graduates out there …It’s May, which means that there are thousands of seniors graduating high school, including my daughter. It got me thinking about how I wish things were different for our teenagers … I wish life was more simple.

Let's focus on microkindnessOur book club gathered recently in my front yard huddled around our fire pit. We call ourselves The Dangerous Creatures and we’ve been together almost 15 years.

Bringing the World to UsWhen my daughter started playing soccer in first grade, we were required to complete a certain number of volunteer hours with the club. There were several opportunities, but the one that sounded best to me was to host a soccer coach for a couple of weeks through an organization called UK Internation

Growing a green communityThere are countless ways to build community, including by planting, protecting and caring for trees. I’m lucky enough to live in a neighborhood that is filled with big, beautiful trees.

Happy Valentine's DayI know a lot of people feel like this day is just a Hallmark holiday and the statistics support this. According to The National Retail Federation and Prosper Insights & Analytics annual survey, consumers are planning to spend $175 on average on Valentine’s Day this year, roughly $10 more than they b

What would be in your memory box?My family just moved our uncle into a memory care facility in Southern California. My uncle has Parkinson’s disease and was just recently diagnosed with Dementia after falling this summer.

It’s the simple thingsSo I just got back from my first car parade. A dear friend’s birthday was a few days ago (Happy Birthday Syma) and Amber, another ridiculously thoughtful friend, suggested a car parade past her house to celebrate while maintaining social distancing.

Tech ShabbatWe just finished our annual Tech Shabbat with our daughters (ages 13 and 16) and dear friends (in their early 30s) who all committed to put screens away for 24 hours. No phones, computers or even TVs are allowed.

TraditionsAt the end of October, my family will host our 22nd annual pumpkin carving party. We got the idea for a pumpkin carving party when we lived in Ithaca, New York and our friends, Chris and Liz, said “grab a pumpkin and let’s all carve together.

Thank you for the oranges“Dear Ms. Vikki -- Thank you for giving me oranges.

The Pad PartyMy friend, Amy Pizarro, is making a difference to thousands of women in Silicon Valley. She saw a problem, found a solution and works hard every year to help women she will never meet but who need a helping hand from a stranger.

A call for a world anthemDoes planet earth have a world anthem? My grandfather, Charles Bowes, thought it should. My grandfather started an advertising and public relations agency, The Bowes Company, in Los Angeles in the 1950s.

Building a coop (and community)When Happy Hollow Park & Zoo decided it needed a new chicken coop for its brood of heritage birds, they went to Happy Hollow Foundation, the nonprofit partner that raises money to support the park and zoo. The coop was included with other projects on a Happy Hollow wish list that was presented to th

Be of loveWe have a framed piece in our home from my grandparents, who we called Coo and Pop. I remember it hanging in their home for years until it was given to my other grandparents on their 50th anniversary.

Found wedding bandI was scrolling through my email and saw a message with the subject line: Found wedding band. I didn’t think much of it and moved on to other emails.

The tale of a turquoise tableI’m all about community — I love bringing people together, being part of our neighborhood and the idea that we can all take care of each other. This is exactly why my friend, Jenn, gave me the book “The Turquoise Table: Finding Community and Connection in Your Own Front Yard” for my birthday a few y

Does government ever work?I recently pulled up to a stoplight in my neighborhood and found myself behind two cars, which was a little surprising because it was 6:45 in the morning and there isn’t usually much traffic then. We all sat in our cars as the minutes ticked by.

Timing is everythingI don’t know about you, but we’ve been doing some major spring cleaning since shelter in place was announced in March. Sometimes we’ll tackle a closet or a drawer and one weekend we decided to go big and clean the garage.

Nudges of calmIt’s been said in so many different ways, but 2020 is hard. It’s hard for everyone.

Do nonprofits matter?Have you ever wondered exactly what nonprofits do in our community? According to the National Council of Nonprofits (Nonprofit Impact Matters: How America’s Charitable Nonprofits Strengthen Communities and Improve Lives), “America’s 1.3 million charitable nonprofits feed, heal, shelter, educate, ins

Volunteering mattersI’ve been noticing that a lot of nonprofits are scrambling to get volunteers. They are posting requests on their websites, online volunteer hubs and on social media.

Leading by exampleMy maternal grandfather was the eldest of five boys born to a busy mother and a Methodist minister who was the director of the San Francisco Goodwill office. When my grandfather, who we called Pop, graduated UC Berkeley during the Great Depression, his father offered him a deal.

The cat who made our house a homeWhen our cats, Calvin and Hobbes, turned one year old, my daughter wanted to have a birthday party for them. It was so sweet and lovely.

A jump startRecently my 16-year-old daughter was headed to a soccer tournament early one morning. When I walked outside with her, I noticed a car parked across the street with the hood open, jumper cables flopped over the side and the driver’s side door wide open.

VillaCalleSJ: Rain or Shine!VivaCalleSJ was held in San Jose a few weeks ago — even in the pouring rain with claps of thunder and lighting brightening up the sky. For those of you who haven’t heard of it, VivaCalleSJ is a free event that opens six miles of San Jose streets to bring people to walk, bike, skate, play and explore

Taking Back the BoxWhen you drive around San Jose, California, you will likely see brightly painted utility boxes sprinkled throughout the city. This is thanks to the Art Box Project produced by Phantom Galleries.

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