It is interesting to consider how people recover from a devastating medical event and wonder if it is the same way a state recovers from a period of lack of transparency or poor policy choices. What exactly makes the difference? Is it just determination and grit or is it a combination of things that lead to recovery and change.
Sometimes it takes a challenging situation, whether it is medical or a threat to our land or our children, for us to see the world more clearly and realize that it isn’t about getting bogged down with what is wrong, but what we can do to make things better.
As examples, back in 2021 a group of citizens formed a non-partisan group to address election concerns. This spring that group welcomed a lot of new legislation that improved voting integrity in the state. Another group has been fighting companies that were trying to use eminent domain to seize property for pipeline ventures that were unprofitable without taxpayer subsidies. This group also saw a number of legislative victories in March (House Bill 1052 was a big one). A third group was working to make sure their kids had single gender bathrooms and changing facilities. They also prevailed.
In all cases, a few people planted a seed, built a team of caretakers, overcame doubt, and nurtured their movement for years. Most experienced intense storms and drought, but they all prevailed.
Each year we see a few amazing success stories like these. One has to wonder what our communities might look like if we each took 15 minutes a day to plant some positive change.
What specifically should we change? Have you sowed the seeds of change? How long have you been watering and caring for it and when do you think we will see results?
