Spare Key just finished reading Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove's The Wisdom of Stability which makes a case for staying in place and investing in a neighborhood. This is the second of two posts inspired by that book. In our mobile culture, we are constantly under pressure to move from city to city in order to advance our careers, to further our educations, or simply to...

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Photo credit: The Wisdom of Stability Spare Key just finished reading Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove's The Wisdom of Stability which makes a case for staying in place and investing in a neighborhood. This is the first of two posts inspired by that book. Spare Key's decision to read the Wisdom of Stability corresponded nicely with my and Amber's recent decision to buy a house. We have...

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I just returned from a night at Art Walk where I got to see a beautiful performance by two Spare Key members at the Springfield Dance Association Community Dance Slam. Abbey performed such a powerful and artistic dance, while Rob played his song Centralia that he wrote for Wild Bob's Musical Book Club. I would have never found myself at this event unless...

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This weekend, some of us had the privilege to volunteer and attend Urban Roots Farm's 5th Annual Farm-to-Table Dinner. The purpose of the dinner is to invite the community to celebrate and learn about what Urban Roots is doing in the West Central neighborhood in Springfield, Mo. More than 125 people gathered between both nights in support of local food and urban farming,...

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As my inaugural act as joint-history czar I am pleased to formally announce the results of Spare Key's first-ever group elections. After weeks of grueling debate the final decisions were made, with each elected official agreeing to a term of one year. With the power vested in me, I hereby declare royal Czar-ship on each of the following victors: Adventure Czar - Rob...

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Instead of the front porch, today I am writing from the hammock. Nutmeg is lazing on the grass. Amber has decorated the harvest table with flowers and place-mats and the benches with blankets. I am getting ready to fire up the firebowl and grill burgers for Spare Key's weekly potluck. Behind me on the porch an audacious plant grows from a crack in...

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Thanks to the wonder of email archives, the list below accounts for nearly every Spare Key potluck between May 2014 and May 2015. We have a potluck dinner together once a week. We take turns hosting, and there are five houses in the rotation so far. After dinner, we decide where to meet next week and what the main course will be. The...

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Spring is fire bowl season. In preparation for this joyous season, I needed to split a bunch of firewood. So last week I sent out a call for help to some friends who live nearby. They came over with their splitting mauls, and we got the job done in no time. Then like locusts we swarmed to another friend’s house to help him...

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  I had a wonderful time at the Saint Louis area Community of Communities gathering on Saturday, March 21. Lotus House hosted the event. In addition to Lotus, other communities were represented including Deaconess Ann House, the Vincentian Volunteer Corp, the New Beguines, and Anam Cara, among others. About 25 people attended overall. The gathering encouraged me in many ways. The Community of...

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Last night, we spent some time refreshing our list of short-term and long-term community goals. We want to post them here so that we can reference them throughout the year and check back in come 2016. Please feel free to leave new ideas in the comments and I will edit as necessary throughout the year.  Short Term Goals Take a community vacation Ideas?...

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I found this picture on Google Images, but the link was crummy. Sorry for stealing! Long I have laughed at the dorks with the ski poles walking briskly across dry land like they are out to accomplish something important. Well, the joke is on me and I have joined those dorky ranks wholeheartedly. After a couple of minor knee injuries the last couple...

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In the Summer of 2012 Amber and I moved to Springfield, and right away we met with some friends at a breakfast cafe to talk about putting together an intentional community. We had a vision of what it could be like. As I reflect on that fateful breakfast several years later, I am happy to report that vision is a reality. In fact,...

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We're in phase one: Compiling a list of books from which to choose. Voting will begin once everybody has had a chance to add their book ideas to the list. Here's the list so far. Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis (1944, 2009) Expanding a series of radio talks into book form, Mere Christianity never flinches as it sets out a rational basis for Christianity...

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