The Village Selfishly Lives.....on and on!!!!

I asked Andrew yesterday how his PSAT test was and his answer was "extremely easy". My response to him was "that scares me"! But now that I have had time to reflect on that, it really doesn't. He has spent his life being surrounded by some of the most positive children I know!

Allison, Courtney, Brandon, Ryan, Austin, Briana and Caleb never cease to amaze me. They continue to set the bar higher and higher for each other. They connect on so many levels and push each other so well, if I could mass produce what they have and sprinkle it on others, just imagine this world.

It was a formula concieved by eight "selfish" individuals over 27 years ago! We selfishly decided we wanted to improve our condition and our communities condition We selfishly decided that our word was bond and we would be there for each other regardless. We selfishly decided that it takes a"village" to raise each other and our children so we tapped into each others resources to deal with lifes challenges. We selfishly celebrate all successes that have come our way.

I believe the most selfish thing we do however is intentionally come together annually for the purpose of letting out children see what is possible for them. They can look at what milestones each of them cross every year and say to each other "I see you"!

So of course the PSAT was incredibly easy to Andrew. He was more than prepared. He had already taken the test seven previous times.

Does the Village Connection Trickle Down?

by Mama Rita

Earlier today I was trying to decide whom I should call to get advice on how to handle a problem I am facing. Among my list of possible "counselors" members of the Village immediately came to mind. It feels nice knowing that I have close friends that I can go to and feel confident that they would be there when I need objective, wise counsel.

I don't know why, but I am wondering if the Village offspring have the same connection among each other as the parents have among themselves. I remember one of the Village young people admitted he called one of the Village adults (the particular situation required avoiding alerting his parents) when he needed some "financial assistance" at college. I also have heard the funny story when Tim was helping Brandon long distance with a college accounting class. Which means the Village young people would, when necessary, ask one of the adults for help. But do they go to each other for help, encouragement, advice? (And an occasional posting on Facebook doesn't count.) Or is that component of the Village relationship only among the adults?

In other words, does the Village Connection trickle down? Village young folks tell me how y'all connect!

Village meet World, World meet The Village

by Courtney

Welcome to the Village Connection. The Village Connection has 2 goals:

1)As a community, we want to make sure that the Village members have as many ways as possible to stay connected with each other. A blog is a central location that we can all come to connect with other Village members.

2)As those who practice and advocate the Village philosophy this blog provides a tool for us to share our stories with the world. Here, people can read our ideas and participate in our conversation.

So, I hope you're as excited as I am about this new opportunity. Share your ideas with us to get the conversation started. Here's your chance to introduce your friends to the Village.