Through new friends I've rooted myself in the identity of our city

Please note: this post is 103 months old and The Cares Family is no longer operational. This post is shared for information only

When you ask your average young professional why they love London, you will usually get a romantic response that references rooftop bars on summer nights with cocktails served in old paint tins, a never ending array of trendy pop-up restaurants and secret cinemas in decaying tube stations. 

But for those who have been here for seventy-odd years, do you think they would feel particularly included in the new craft beer shop that's taken over their favourite caff, or, do you think they’d even want to be? 

Last year I found myself, a born and bred Londoner, without a single member of family left here in the city – everyone had gone, seeking out somewhere cheaper, quieter or hotter. I longed for the connection of someone who remembered London as it was before all the craft beer – and then I found North London Cares.

I flung myself into all of the clubs I could – yoga, dances, cooking, and even nattering away for podcasts. There isn't one club I walked away from without the feeling of not having only met new friends, but having also re-rooted myself back into the genuine identity of this incredible city.

After a few weeks I felt like a regular – going to the clubs was just as natural as meeting my other friends for a pub lunch. I became fast friends with Laura, a lady who remembered the circus coming to Old Street and tigers being led down the main road, and Ray, who potentially knows everything there is to know about 60s music.

There’s Jean, who loves Italy maybe even more than me, and Ethel with her wicked laugh and a New Year's resolution to be “more outrageous.” I met all of these amazing people that didn't mind the city around them constantly changing and whizzing – they just wanted to still feel a part of it. They wanted to nosy around the craft beer place and still feel a connection to the city they built their lives in.

When I got a call from a member of the North London Cares team asking if I wanted to be buddied up with Ethel for their Love Your Neighbour project, it was a no brainer. Ethel and I had already spent many social clubs gossiping over Mob Wives, debating drug legalisation and bemoaning our Catholic school experiences, so it seemed like this was just us cementing our friendship. Despite the couple of generations between us, Ethel and I are soul sisters; our sneaky trips to McDonalds after certain social clubs stand as evidence to that.

I pop over to Ethel's on my way home from work most Tuesdays. I bring Stylist and the Evening Standard, we talk about London’s Mayor, travelling and shopping. We make smoothies and she tells me I should be out finding a man. Love Your Neighbour has proved not to be about volunteering but simply about finding a new friend. 

Whilst the city constantly shifts around us, it's essential we remember where all this came from -– and there can't be a better way to do that than with a friend, over a cup of tea and a slice of marble cake.