I grew up in the Midwest, where my mother was the de facto urgent care clinician for the neighborhood—raising five children taught her all about scratchy throats and scraped knees—and my father helped install everyone’s cement driveways, which endure to this day. Community and generosity defined our way of life, be it around our backyard picnic table or the leftovers that went home with everyone afterward.
Living in Jacksonville has given me the opportunity to return to my roots. My neighbors and I look out for each other, and spontaneous gatherings are not all that unusual (leftovers included). But my sense of belonging extends beyond contented relationships with close friends. It encompasses the entire community in an ever-expanding circle of giving and caring.
A case in point: After Jo Parker took WillowCreek under her wing, she and I were brainstorming ways to enhance her customers’ gift giving experience. I suggested providing complimentary collage gift cards, which I make in my spare time. Everyone I knew had more than enough of them, and the stack of boxes containing my ongoing output was no longer unobtrusive. I could create collages to my heart’s content, and they could find their way into the world via WillowCreek.
This turned out to be the perfect solution. Over the past six years I have made thousands of collage cards—I am not exaggerating—and Jo has regaled me with stories of where and to whom they have gone.
When Jo suggested we co-host a Valentine’s Day collage workshop, I jumped at the chance to share the joy as well as my storehouse of supplies. We held two of them in the room behind WillowCreek, both of which were a blast.
Vivienne Grant enjoyed the first workshop so much, she asked if I could put together a Garden Club event to create cards for their Mother’s Day flower sale. We did just that, inaugurating the front room at the Community Center along the way. Not to stop there, last month the group made collage cards to complement the wreaths and centerpieces they sell for the holidays.
Generosity begets generosity. Joy leads to more joy. Sharing is contagious. Jacksonville’s vitality is palpable because so many people support it with their time and talent, energy and resources. Along the way we develop a stronger sense of community, an awareness that the common ground we create defines who we are individually and together.
Thank you, Jacksonville.