When in 6th grade I left my old house and I moved to a neighborhood I could call home with neighbors that I could call family. A tight knit community is the perfect way to describe where I live. The "hood" consists of people who truly care about each other and are always very friendly with one another. When you pass one of my neighbors on the sidewalk you always got the friendliest wave or hello.

I went from living in a quiet neighborhood where I did not know or socialize with my neighbors, to a neighborhood that was always loud, filled with life, excitement, and all around "good vibes." Children were always out on the streets having a good time playing basketball, riding bicycles or using side walk chalk. The parents even have as much fun as the kids with a monthly book club, card games, and backyard BBQ's.

I went from having to text my friends who lived far away from me to hangout, to walking to my friends house, knocking on their door and asking their parents if they were home. I have met some of my best friends in my neighborhood. People who were always there for me when I needed it, and although I have drifted apart from some, these friends truly made my childhood special.

Babysitting is one of my favorite things to do in my neighborhood. I have met some of the most amazing children and I've watched them grow up. You know you have a truly special bond with the kids when you would rather spend your Saturday night in babysitting them than going out and hanging with your friends. I'd chose hanging out with them over my friends any day.

When Hurricane Sandy struck our community and the town was in darkness, that's when our neighborhood came together. The power was out but you could find our neighbors with generators running extension cords from one house to another to give people who needed power the most like families with young children or the elders the ability to have heat that night, or to keep their food from spoiling.

If a family in our neighborhood just had a baby or if they were going through a hard time, the people of my neighborhood always stepped in to help. From cooking meals for the family to watching their children or even just stopping by to see how the person is, the people who live in my neighborhood are always there for each other.

Block parties were the epitome of our tight knit neighborhood. Block parties were a tradition in my neighborhood that everyone always looked forward to. A date would be selected for the end of summer before everyone had to go back to school, college, or work. On the day of the block party the whole neighborhood would get together and enjoy a BBQ, games, music, and socializing. Block parties are all around just a fun time.

You know you live in a close neighborhood when you have random kids running through your backyard on a warm summer night playing man hunt or you look out the window of your house to see children swinging from the low branches of the tree in your front yard.

And I wouldn't want it any other way.