Why I'm still here

I had to pick up a prescription refill from the Rite-Aid at W. 65th & Franklin. It was a pleasant evening just around sunset, so Joanne & I walked about a mile to the store. On the way we stopped to talk with Bill, our friend & former mailman, as he rode his bike up the street. We compared paint schemes on houses as we walked along Franklin. At W. 44th we noticed new landscaping in the front yards of several houses, including St. Herman's.

A couple of blocks further along we noticed Maria and Charlie walking on the other side of Franklin, and shouted greetings across the street.

As we walked out of the Rite-Aid parking lot I saw a familiar face across the street: Leslie, a student in the Interactive Media class. We stopped to talk and got to meet her husband. Half a block further north, Chuck was riding his bike while Catherine walked nearby. More greetings shouted across the street.

So despite almost daily news about problems in the city, after thirty years this is why I still enjoy living on Cleveland's Near West Side. It's a real neighborhood. You're likely to see your friends & neighbors if you simply take time for a walk. They're also around when you need them. That means a lot.

 

TOP