The Home Porch In Its Simplest Terms Can Help The Neighborhood Become An Extended Family
By: Tim Gorman

I remember sitting on my porch in Texas watching the fireflies light up. My friends and I would play games catching the fireflies and putting them in a bottle. The person with the most fireflies won the game. Summer nights were always special times. My friends and I could stay outside light at night running and jumping on the porch swings at the neighbors house.

I can still see my grandmother sitting on her porch. My grandmother lived next door to us. She would call to me from her porch so I could come over and get a treat. I had several porches in my childhood because the neighbors would gather on someone?s porch and drink lemonade and eat cookies. Everyone?s porch was available for an impromptu get together.

Our porch was nothing elaborate just concrete steps that lead to a wider expanse of concrete. The porch was wide enough so that the family could gather outside when the weather permitted and enjoy conversations, tell jokes and find out all the latest gossip.

Mr. Henderson and his wife lived across the street. I can still see him rocking in his rocking chair watching the neighborhood. We considered ?The Henderson?s the noisy neighbors because they knew everybody?s business. They would tell stories to the parents about the antics of the children. Mrs. Henderson took her seat on the porch in the morning and made quilts with some of the older neighbors.

When I was transferred to California, there were no porches. In fact my friends had never experienced the camaraderie of porch sitting. They did not know that a valuable learning experience had somehow escaped them because they never knew the joy of porch sitting.

Porches are making a revival all over the country. Some homeowners are searching for that connection to their childhoods. Some homeowners who never had a porch in childhood see the addition of a porch as an inexpensive addition to their living space.

A porch can offer a place to eat, a quiet place to read, relax and experience nature. Porches are used to get acquainted with nature. Sitting outside can provide the opportunity to chat with neighbors and get to know them. These inexpensive additions can provide a valuable tool for building and uniting a community unit. The porch in its simplest terms can help the neighborhood become an extended family.

Neighbors passing by feel free to say ?hello?. They just might be invited to the porch to share a glass of water. Americans are emerging from a cocoon weaved from their need for privacy. Americans are stepping out from their air conditioned homes and are moving outside on the porch to meet their neighbors and enjoy nature.

For more information on porch enclosures try visiting Porch-Accessories.com where you will find helpful information on porch awnings, screened porches, porch rockers, front porch decorating and porch swings.

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