In a recent study, only 30% of Australians know their neighbours’ names — and that’s just names, not real connection. Many of us live side by side but don’t really see each other, don’t check in, and don’t know what’s happening next door.
That reality came to life in a Sydney suburb where an article recently went viral. A man mowed his lawn and stopped at the boundary with his neighbour’s property. The neighbour’s grass? Eight to ten inches high. Frustrated, he posted a photo to the local noticeboard, asking: Am I being unreasonable?
Comments poured in. Some said there was “no excuse” not to mow. Others felt he should have finished the strip himself. But eventually, someone asked a different question entirely: Why not knock on the door and find out what’s going on?
Rob and Ash both remembered streets growing up where neighbours quietly looked out for each other — watering gardens, feeding pets, checking on homes. Interaction wasn’t constant, but genuine care was there.
Maybe the lawn debate isn’t really about grass at all. Maybe it’s a mirror showing what we’ve quietly lost in our communities — the simple, everyday acts of neighbourliness that make life better for everyone.
Here’s the question worth sitting with: Who is your neighbour? And more importantly, how could you show them you care today?
Tune in to Rob & Ash for the Drive Home weekdays 3-6pm on 89.9 The Light 💛
