To the Editor:

A community is built by focusing on people’s gifts, and diversity among community members makes this approach all the more important. With “Welcoming Week” just around the corner [Sept. 14-23], it is a wonderful time to come together to recognize all of the opportunities to connect with and learn from one another. 

As recent transplants from Missouri to the Garden State, my wife and I were delighted to eventually connect with a reclusive neighbor through a hibiscus tree. It was evident from viewing her prolific garden that our neighbor must be a master gardener. One of the stereotypes about people in Missouri is that they won’t hesitate to look you straight in the eye, introduce themselves, and hold a full-fledged conversation whether or not you’re interested. Yet for several years I struggled to figure out how a guy like me from the Bible belt could “break down the middle wall of partition between us” in relation to this seemingly reclusive neighbor.

It happened one day last summer when she walked by our back porch and said something to the effect of “whatever you’re doing to care for your hibiscus tree, don’t stop – it’s beautiful!”  It was weeks later that I had an opportunity to share that my hibiscus thrived on regular doses of Miracle Grow. I then asked her for ideas on how to properly care for it.

The wall between us came tumbling down as she insisted on going to Ace Hardware with me to buy the right-sized pot and the correct potting soil. During our round trip to Ace, I learned the incredible life story of this remarkable, unassuming person. She had an almost Horatio Alger-like story to share, along with a selfless heart of gold. Nineteenth-century theologian Mary Baker Eddy best describes this heartfelt connection with my new neighbor: “When the heart speaks, however simple the words, its language is always acceptable to those who have hearts.” And isn’t this an approach that can give us a helpful starting point for conversations that will make every week a “Welcoming Week”?

Steve Drake

Hospitality Manager

Tenacre: A Ministry of Christian Scientists