Each morning when I arrive at work I say hello to the folks who sweep the streets, maintain the landscaping, pick up the garbage, and touch up paint on the curbs. They do the overlooked but crucial jobs, allowing the rest of us the luxury of focusing on our jobs.
My office is on the second floor of a shopping center. The retail businesses are on ground level, offering such things as health foods, jewelry repair, cooking utensils, and pizza by the slice. Most of them open about 10 AM.
Typically I arrive at my office around 8 AM. So the parking lot is largely vacant, except for those who have already been at work for two hours preparing the grounds for another busy day.
One guy is mowing the lawn, another fixing a faulty irrigation sprinkler. Over there is the guy here to fix a furnace. On the roof a guy is removing leaves from the rain gutters, and over there a guy is checking the timer on the parking lot lights.
I get out of my car and find myself waving to them all. They wave back, often calling me “boss” or “jefe.” Most don’t actually work for me — they are contracted through the landscaping company or some other service. But they are there each morning, and they’ve come to know who I am, so they wave or shout their morning greetings.
It’s a good feeling. People say we have lost our sense of community, and I understand the sentiment. But if you look for it, and if you just slow down for 10 seconds, it’s there waiting for you. Wave to people, remember their names, smile at them, let them know you appreciate the (often) thankless job they do.
In doing this, little by little, you rebuild a touch of the community we all need these days.