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Japanese community reduces burglaries by planting flowers
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Japanese designer Kay Yamada works
on her show garden (AP Photo/Sang Tan)
After learning that burglars were less likely to target homes on flower-lined streets, neighbors in the Tokyo district of Suginami launched Operation Flower in their community, and burglaries plummeted almost 80%.
One city official explained that people who are outside tending to their gardens are more likely to be on the lookout for unusual and possibly criminal behaviors that could threaten the neighborhood.
Homeowners who are out in the front yard tending their gardens are sending a powerful message: “This is my home. I care about my property. I care about my community. I am staking my claim here.” There is a sense that the home would not be an easy target.
As individuals, we can each hold our head high and send a similar message. “This is me. I care about myself. I care about my dreams. I am staking my claim here.” In a society filled with backstabbing, gossip, and criticism, we can each send a bold message that we will not be an easy target. We can courageously and unapologetically be ourselves:
- "Never be bullied into silence. Never allow yourself to be made a victim. Accept no one's definition of your life; define yourself." – Harvey Fierstein
- “Insist on yourself; never imitate.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson
- “There comes a time when you have to stand up and shout: This is me, dammit! I look the way I look, think the way I think, feel the way I feel, love the way I love! I am a whole complex package. Take me or leave me.” – Stacey Charter
One of the core lessons in all spiritual Teachings is “Know thyself.” Know yourself, trust yourself, believe in yourself, be yourself. Let the world know you will not be an easy target.
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