My heart sank when I saw the for sale sign on my neighbors lawn. Admittedly, I had a feeling it was coming because I have gone through this before. You see, the house beside me is a great “starter house”. Young couples move in to what seems to be a spacious house. When baby number one arrives, it is still good. But baby number two causes issues. The once spacious house becomes too small for a growing family. As a result, the for sale sign emerges.
I have lived on my street for over 23 years and moved in as a young newlywed couple. Our first neighbors were a nightmare. They were extreme hoarders and the mess spilled out into the yard. There were also drugs in the mix. So when they left ( due to foreclosure and incarceration) I had a sigh of relief. A builder purchased the lot and gutted the house and converted the hideous dump into a beautiful yard. Not long after the house makeover a newlywed couple moved in.
I made it a point to introduce myself to the new neighbors and gave them our number. They were very nice and had the occasional party that lasted into late night that sometimes kept my small children up but that was few and far between. They were two professionals that went away frequently on weekends all summer long. Then the children started coming. They decided they needed something bigger and wanted to be closer to family. The for sale sign went up.
I was nervous. I had flashbacks of our first hoarder neighbors. Our properties are close and I couldn’t possibly go through years of living with a nightmare neighbor again. Who will be the new neighbors? What will they be like? Can they possible be as good as the neighbors that are leaving? But my fretting was for not. The new people were just as good as the former – even better! Again, another young newlywed couple looking for their first home. I made it a point again to introduce myself and give them our number. Things were great ! But life doesn’t stay the same. Yes, baby number one arrived and three years later came baby number two. The starter house became too small. They looked into renovating the house to make it work but ultimately decided moving was the best option. And the for sale sign went up.
We talked about the progress of moving by staying safely 6 feet away. They said it was a real challenge moving and looking for a house during a pandemic. It was sad seeing them move their life out of their home into a moving van. When the move was complete and everything was gone I looked through my window at an empty house. My heart sank. Here we go again. New neighbor anxiety. All the negative feelings of uncertainty came flooding back again.
I am not sure when the new neighbors are moving in and I don’t know anything about them. That scares me. If there is a prayer out there for good neighbors then I better start saying it. All I can do is wait and find a way to introduce myself and my family during this social distancing time. For now it will be a wave from a distance and a welcome yell across the lawn. And yes, a lot of peeking through the window!