Sisters nice

There’s Minnesota nice. And Wisconsin nice. And Canada nice. Maybe some others, probably mostly in the Midwest. I don’t recall Oregon nice. Nor California nice. And then there’s Sisters nice. You know the kind of nice I’m talking about.

It mostly just happens, right? It happens so routinely that we don’t need to put it into words. Like many of you, I ride my bike around town. And, much to the chagrin of my adult children, an electric scooter. Not one of those three-wheel mobility models. No, the rad kind the kids ride – two wheels with standup handlebars on a platform.

This is a great way to experience Sisters nice. Cars and trucks come to an instant stop if I just look like I’m going to cross the street. In some cases I wasn’t, but I figured I’d better just to show appreciation.

Same when walking the dog. He may be stopping for a long sniff near an intersection when bam, on go the brakes often accompanied by a friendly hand gesture. The gestures speak whole sentences. Like: “I got you. It’s safe to cross. Don’t worry. You’re good. This is Sisters.”

In parking lots it can be comical. Drivers insisting the other driver take the preferential parking spot. “You go.” “No, you go.” Back and forth it goes, hands gesturing, until one finally acquiesces and glides in.

The same when two arrive at the door at the same time. Each trying to hold the door open for the other. “After you.” “No, after you.” You’ve seen this movie, right?

What is it in Sisters? Are we still clinging to that Old West neighborliness? Quaint rural values? Don’t know. Don’t care. Just know I like it, and am grateful for it.

Google “what makes a town nice” and you will get no answers. What you will get is “The 6 Rules of Making Attractive City,” “What is your personal definition of an ideal city,” “What makes a city beautiful,” “Top Ten Things That Attract People To A Town.”

I clicked on that last one. Nowhere was “nice” listed.

Google “synonyms nice” to get closer to what it means to be Sisters nice. Choose your own three or four from the dozen or so examples.

In this week’s issue, be sure to see the section Neighbors. You’ll find features of nice people doing nice things. The town’s full of nice.

Just ask my wife, who had an unexpected meeting with a Sisters sheriff’s deputy last week. Seems she ignored a certain red sign common at intersections. Prepared to meet her fate and getting a deserved scolding — or worse — she got a nice explanation of the need for safety from a very nice gentleman.

After getting taken to task in last week’s paper by not one but three readers who did not mince words about a story I wrote, to which they found lacking in context, my friend Kelly said: “You think that was nice?”

“It wasn’t un-nice, I answered. They were making a point — a forceful one — but it wasn’t personal. Or at least it didn’t feel that way.”

Letters to the Editor is one of the most-read parts of the paper and with good reason. It’s where folks can add to the fabric of Sisters, which includes healthy disagreements. That’s a value. A nice one. And one which The Nugget holds dear.

So, thanks, readers, for paying attention. And staying engaged. We’re listening.