Here in the country, we don’t live very close to our neighbors. In fact, the only house I can see from mine is far away and would take me nigh on an hour to drive to. But, my neighbors are my most important asset—they can and often do respond in case of trouble faster than emergency services, they can and do help if times get bad, and they share many of the same concerns as I do.

Yesterday, one of my neighbors, Sharon, came over to do a country visit. With 20 minutes between her home and mine and busy lives, we don’t get to meet very often and, when we do, we don’t have time to just sit on our tushes and drink tea. So last week I helped her clean her house. This week she helped me clean mine. And we talked—some was just plain gossip (SoHum is still buzzing with tales of the local youth who may or may not have participated in several burglaries that culminated in a local man getting shot.) But most chatter was about our sons who’ve grown up together, our husbands and our lives.

When she left, the stairs from my garage to the boys’ room were vacuumed clean of webs (she had extender hoses that I didn’t even know were available,) my Christmas packages were wrapped (her ancestors who escaped from Nazi Germany just ahead of the Holocaust hopefully aren’t turning in their graves) and my heart was content. In the past, we’ve had larger housecleaning groups. For several years, four of us met and talked and cleaned house once a month at a different neighbor’s home. Which meant that every three months, 15 to 16 woman hours of work would scrub my home from top to bottom. And, I got to spend precious time with some of my favorite people. Beyond the cleaning and the information, we’ve built bonds that last. We’re there for each other in times of trouble. Right now, coordinating four schedules is difficult so Sharon and I are the only two meeting for these country visits but we’re doing it more frequently.

I’ve mostly seen this done with housecleaning but splitting wood, pruning trees, gardening and exercising could all be shared. Multiple studies have shown that nurturing social relationships is a key to happiness. Connecting with neighbors weaves laughter into my life. Working together has brought me pure joy. Sadly, people who are lonely double their mortality rates. So, to all my neighbors, homegrown and blog made, put a little country into your visits. Reach out this coming month to someone whether they live across the block, across town or across a watershed and start building a longer life and a stronger community. And, hey, this time next year, your house may be cleaner, your Christmas packages wrapped nicer, your butt be smaller and your wood stacked sooner than ever before.