Question: Neighbors are the people who live near us. In your opinion, what are the qualities of a good neighbor? Use specific details and examples in your answer.

Neighbors are very important part of our lives. We spend most of our lives at the same neighborhood with our neighbors. The impact they can place in our lives can be huge. They can cause us so many problems or they can actually help us in difficulties. So, it is really important that our neighbors have specific qualities. Even though some people might not care for their neighbors' personality. Some might do. In my view, a good neighbor should be trustworthy and sociable for the following two reasons.

First, neighbors should be trustworthy. Being around people that we can trust would make us feel safe. It is important not to be stressed by the thought of being rubbed or stolen by your neighbors. For example, I live in a very safe neighborhood in Dallas, TX. My husband has been living in this area for about seven years. So, he knows everyone and all of our neighbors trust and respect him. I remember when we started dating around two years ago, one of our neighbors who lives across the street asked him to watch her kids for couple hours. My experience with American culture proved that people will never allow you to baby-sit their child unless otherwise they know you very well. On the other side, we also trust them. Two of our neighbors have our house key. Whenever we travel, they come by in the morning and take care of our dogs such as letting them out and feeding them. Also, if it rains, they put our dogs in their kennels.

The second characteristic of a neighbor, which is really crucial, is being a sociable person. I remember when I was 8-year-old, my family and I used to live in a neighborhood that we barely knew our neighbors. In big cities such Tehran, people do not have much time to get to know each other. I remember seeing my neighbors in a shopping mall and not even greeting with them. They were like strangers to us. Not being sociable made our lives very difficult. Since we could not make some decisions. For instance, our next door neighbor owned a very famous factory and they were socially reserved. Once when their whole family were praying in the morning, someone broke into their house and stole all of their precious Persian rugs. They were so heratbroken that they wanted to do something about it. They talked to my dad about having a security person for the whole neighborhood. Their wish never came true because no one knew them, so they did not want to make any effort. If they were more sociable, they could attract more people's attention toward their problem. Maybe our neighbors would have cared more about them if they were introduced or invited to their house. This experience taught me that having more sociable neighbors can be extremly helpful and being reserved or introverted can be harmful.

In conclusion, neighbors should be trustworthy and sociable. Having trustworthy neighbors can make our lives easier by not having stress. Also, sociable neighbors can assist themselves and the neighborhood in case of emergency as I mentioned above. As a neighbor, I recommend every single person to have both of those characteristics.