A little friendly competition, lots of food and very little bloodshed
These moments of nice outdoor weather in Vermont feel especially precious, perhaps because everyone who lives here knows they are on borrowed time. Enjoying a beautiful evening outdoors during the “good” months is one of the reasons, I think, many of us choose to live here, tolerate mud season and stick season, and raise our families in this little corner of the world.
One way our neighbors have chosen to celebrate these fleeting summer and fall evenings is with some good old-fashioned athletic competition. Living on Munger Street, we would be remiss if we failed to capitalize on these fine family sporting evenings, which we have dubbed, with a pithy moniker, the Munger Games.
What started as a handful of families with small children and a competitive spirit has evolved into a delightful ongoing tradition that now draws neighbors of all ages. Every month or so during the summer and early fall, we unofficially elect a team captain, who chooses a sport and then attempts to corral the children into participating. Thus far, we have successfully executed soccer, whiffle ball, capture the flag, corn hole, and perhaps my favorite of all: kickball.
It was pure magic watching a few of my septuagenarian neighbors line up to kick a red rubber ball rolled somewhat erratically by one of the kids. It was an absolute delight to watch one of the neighborhood grandparents spring into action to catch a ball mid-flight, just as it was about to sail deep into the tall grass, getting one of my kids out in the process. And the fact that we divided the teams by gender that particular evening? Well, that just made the girls’ victory all the sweeter.
The games wrap up with a flurry of activity as parents attempt to convince their children to eat something from the potluck that isn’t just crackers or dessert. Inevitably, one of the dogs makes a play for a delectable morsel left unattended on the buffet. And as the sun begins to set, we finally call it quits and slowly trudge home, full of food and feeling a little more sore than one might expect after a family-friendly competition.
The real gift of these evenings, though, is the opportunity to connect with neighbors who come from all walks of life. We have a professor nearing retirement and his wife, who teaches pilates; homestead gardeners; a builder; and husbands who do something vaguely related to IT that I still don’t understand. We have volunteer firefighters and business owners; teachers of many flavors, both active and retired; ASL interpreters; and a couple of health professionals mixed in for good measure.
What I love most is the chance to spend time with neighbors of different ages and backgrounds, some with children and some without, forging connections and creating memories. It feels like a glimpse of what I imagine the “real Vermont” to be: a ragtag group of people, some three generations deep and others newly arrived, breaking bread, cheering each other on, occasionally yelling at someone else’s kids when they get out of line, and building the kind of community we hope will endure for decades to come.
The Munger Games are nothing new. This is hardly a revolutionary idea. But it is one I hope others might consider in their own neighborhoods. It is an opportunity to build intergenerational relationships, both for yourself and for your children. Find a little time to get to know the people who share your street, your town, and your state. Find ways to connect, to laugh, and to enjoy one another—and to appreciate these rare, gorgeous moments in the little slice of the world we are so fortunate to call home.
– Jodi Brown is the director of chaos for her New Haven family of four and OB/GYN at Porter Medical Center.