Promoting prosperous places to grow up and grow old by fostering care communities and care economies for & by neighbors.
In a recent story, I said that I expected to get hired by Naborforce. As a reminder, that’s the company that connects older adults to helpers in their own communities. Think Uber for but for companion care, not rides. So, I submitted a quick application and got a fast response by email. The message contained…Continue reading When transportation stops us from giving or getting care + a vision document
Ages ago, my boss mentioned that his anniversary was coming up. I wanted to acknowledge the occasion in some way, but wasn’t sure whether convention allowed something like that given that our relationship was professional. So I asked my sister what she thought about the matter. “Mary,” she said, “in my experience, people rarely respond…Continue reading We’re the ones who remake convention
2 bedrooms. Check.1.5 baths. Check.Master bath vanity with a generous countertop. Check.Dishwasher. Check.Sunlight and a patch of grass immediately outside my front door. Check. I got these things on my wish list for my new home at a lower cost than I’d imagined possible. This good fortune and more prompted my sister to wonder if…Continue reading What’s on your prosperity wish list?
The conversation with my neighbor started nicely enough, but I said four little words—”tell me about it”—that made everything go sideways. My comment made her feel as if I was comparing our situations and she took offense at that. I, in turn, felt an upsurge of anger at her offense—I wasn’t comparing our situations as…Continue reading When you don’t feel seen by someone
The doors to leave Alexandria weren’t opening and I was like, “Look, God, if Atlanta isn’t where’s next, show me the right place. Clearly. Thank you.” Thinking about that now, I think about that joke of the guy who kept praying—feeling exasperated—to win the lottery, until God finally said, “Buy a ticket, already!” Only God…Continue reading I’m finally moving back to Atlanta
If it weren’t for my late father’s hospice nurse, I’m sure my mom would have fallen by now: he saw her moving about our apartment and told her to use her walker ALWAYS. She listened, and it has saved her from taking some tumbles. (I shared that with my mom’s permission and though this isn’t…Continue reading Fall prevention deception
I sat up straight in bed recently with Franklin Delano Roosevelt on my mind. Specifically, how his hardships with polio shaped him into the leader he became. My hardships are waning and not as dramatic as FDR’s, which left him paralyzed from the waist down, but they’ve left me feeling as if the person I…Continue reading Heeding FDR’s call to become fairly radical
I pass a house on my walks with a “ROB ME!” sign in the front yard often. OK, so there isn’t an actual sign, but newspapers piling up on the walkway as good as advertise that no one’s home. If I didn’t live so far away, I’d offer the house dwellers to collect their papers…Continue reading Low-hanging trust building
I put myself in a bad situation: By waiting too long to face the unknown by taking a new path in my career, life “helped” me into action with a blessing disguised as a health crisis. This pushed me to resign, which thrust me deep into unfamiliar territory. So in the end, I confronted the…Continue reading How neighbors can help us evolve and be prosperous
Village Company 360—the former name of A Village for Life—wasn’t my first pick for a business name. But the website addresses of names I wanted were taken or cost thousands, and my brain couldn’t access the name A Village for Life at the time. Anyway, the word “company” fixed those problems, and had the added…Continue reading The power of building boring businesses