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Ten years ago, in central Austin, Texas, Kristin Schell painted a picnic table bright turquoise and placed it near the curb in her front yard. Then, she sat down and waited. She felt a bit crazy, but in her heart, she was hoping that by sitting outside so conspicuously, she might meet a few of her neighbors.
Within a few hours, she met a neighbor from around the corner. Within a few weeks, a small group of neighbors was gathering to tell stories. Within months, families were gathering on Friday evenings, and more turquoise tables were popping up around town.
Within a few years, Schell was doing podcasts and telling the story of the turquoise table at conferences, and in 2017, she published a book on the topic, “The Turquoise Table: Finding Community and Connection in Your Own Front Yard.”...