Plan a Neighborhood Potluck This Summer
This is your nudge to start getting to know your neighbors
In the various surveys I’ve sent out to readers, the topic that people are most interested in learning about and digging into is community preparedness. I’ve even received emails from readers who say they struggle to figure out a way to get started. And Brekke and I dedicated an entire podcast about neighborhood and community preparedness a couple weeks ago. I’m realizing now that I have left out (or rather didn’t really think about) one of the most bonding activities for a community: eating together.
Sure, I probably mentioned having a potluck, but as I’ve been working on a story about cohousing communities here in Portland, the one factor that truly bonds them is not necessarily the design of the community (although that helps greatly), it’s that they eat together regularly. Some multiple times a week and some several times a month. Regardless of the size or the central focus of the community, breaking bread together is essential.
There’s a certain kind of bonding that happens when you’re connecting over food. And it goes beyond the mere fact that you’re learning more about the people around you, it is actually helping to embed you in a community and become less isolated increasing your general wellbeing, which research shows can have the same health benefits as healthier eating and more exercise.
I knew eating together was a wonderful thing—I love nothing more than a dinner party at someone’s house with no determinate end time. I did not know how essential it was for our health and wellbeing. And I honestly didn’t even think of it as one of the first and bed entry points to community preparedness.
I realize that for some, especially introverts, the actual part of organizing such a gathering feels scary and like a lot. So it can start with just a few people at first. Get your more immediate neighbors together. And after a couple informal meals, perhaps suggest a regular rotating potluck. Then, over time, bring more and more neighbors in.
As I’m writing this, I started thinking about organizing a potluck and realized how every single weekend seems to be packed with something or other this summer. Such is the life of a parent trying to make the most of summer vacation. But we do have many weekdays open and if it’s chill and easy where people need only prepare one dish, it could actually add to the ease of a weekday meal. So there are options.
You don’t need to even bring up preparedness right away. It could be something that comes up over time or you can chat with a few people informally who are more into it than others. But really the overall goal is to connect with the people around you.
This is your nudge (and mine as well) to get that next potluck on the calendar. Report back and let us know if you’re eating with others this summer!