The Porch Sit

Saturday. And today I want to formally endorse one of the oldest and best summer activities there is: the porch sit.

The porch sit requires almost nothing. A place to sit that’s at least partially outside. A drink, ideally cold. And the willingness to do nothing in particular for a stretch of time — to just be out there, watching the street, nodding at the neighbors, letting the afternoon go by at its own pace.

It sounds like nothing. It’s actually everything. The porch sit is where the neighborhood happens. It’s where you notice things — who’s walking by, whose garden is thriving, what the light is doing. It’s presence without effort. Rest without guilt. Community without an agenda.

My grandmother was a champion porch sitter. The light stayed on at night, but during the day, she was out there — available, unhurried, part of the street. Both were the same practice, really.

Find your porch today, whatever form it takes. And just sit a while.

The porch sit: presence without effort, rest without guilt, community without an agenda.

Where’s your porch — the place you sit and let the world go by?