EDITOR’S NOTE

By Laura Rearwin Ward

There are whispers around our idyllic valley. Residents smell a post-pandemic shift in the air, and it’s not just because they are taking their masks off. Jobs have gone remote. People can live anywhere, and adorable rural communities everywhere are in demand. Home prices have skyrocketed as Ojai has caught the eye of the world outside.

Who will become our new neighbors? A horde, as some people imagine, of urbanites who will erase the small-town values we “locals” prize? Or might they be a wave of inspired seekers wishing for a simpler and more connected life? The key, according to American novelist and cultural critic Wendell Berry, is that “it all turns on affection.” When you love a place, the land, its people, your affection becomes the root of a deep connection to that place, and the basis for your motivation to participate and serve. Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Wallace Stegner describes those citizens as stickers, “those who settle down and love the life they have made and the place they have made it in.”

Small-town living is not for everyone. It’s not a matter of transplanting your city abode, placing it in the country, and “adjusting your settings.” It is different here. There is always room for those who share their talents, and adapt to Ojai life. You’re living like a local when you: don’t talk on speaker-phone when others are present; acknowledge other people when you pass them on the street or see them in the store; brake suddenly when someone approaches the crosswalk; introduce yourself to your neighbors; offer your backyard crop overages to your neighbors; (and you have truly arrived when you wave the other driver to go first even when they have the right of way).

And joining a Facebook community doesn’t count; we need more than likes, hearts, and comments on social media to power our town. We Californians can be cold, but Ojai is old-school, and to flourish, our community depends upon you to join our museum, our Chamber of Commerce, our service clubs and conservation groups, our Ojai Valley Hospital Foundation, and our local newspaper. Attend City Council meetings, planning meetings, school groups, and/ or nonprofit groups; coach, clear trails, count birds, learn about our water issues, and help those in need.

We live in community with a fair amount of local accountability, (it’s not a good place to disappear). We wear multiple hats because a small town always needs all hands on deck to thrive. As perhaps with most small communities, we care more about how you treat your neighbors than what you wear, what you drive, or your party politics. It’s a small pond, so friendly counts. We stand tall together — even as acquaintances — and we catch each other when we fall.

We few in Ojai love this place. It’s special, and our town’s culture is worth fighting for. To survive inevitable change, both recent and longtime residents will need to say goodbye to the modern sensibilities of personalizing your surroundings to suit yourself, and allow yourself to be changed — through your affection — to adapt to small-town Ojai life. To preserve our town’s character, Ojai locals must act as ambassadors, and extend a hand to newcomers … show them how we do things and why. Then perhaps they will teach us how to improve.

What can you bring to Ojai? Affection. Be a sticker, and let your affection guide you. Wendell Berry reminds us, “We do not have to live as if we are alone.”

With affection,

Laura Rearwin Ward

EDITOR / PUBLISHER Laura Rearwin Ward

Ojai Magazine Summer ensemble

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