I hope everyone had a safe and enjoyable Independence Day weekend, and hopefully everyone is going into this coming week with the same number of fingers they had last week. We celebrated 250 years of American independence yesterday, and even though Americans come together every year on July 4th, this one felt a little different. This year really just felt like everyone was doing just a bit more, everyone felt just a little more patriotic, and everyone just enjoyed sharing a day with each other. We are very fortunate to have a day every year where everybody sets aside their differences and is nothing more than an American, but the bittersweet part of this is that the feeling on July 4th doesn’t last all year. It’s an unfortunate part of everyday life that we tend to compartmentalize ourselves, usually for no good reason other than we don’t like “the other persons” opinion. The world has felt polarized for many years, now. We have let ourselves become influenced by talking heads and news outlets (all of them), but I think that over the last year or so it seems like the scales are falling off of a lot of eyes. Maybe it’s due to an oversaturation of podcasts or social media influencers, but I think if you just take a second to look around, you can see the world shifting a bit – and I think it’s shifting for the better.
We all get caught up in our own echo chambers, usually not intentionally, it just kind of happens. I like to think that I make an honest attempt at trying to not fall into this habit myself. Doing so means you have to walk a fine line because sometimes voicing an opinion that is not widely shared is deemed rude or belligerent. For some, it’s easier to not voice your opinion. Others may voice it often at the risk of being labeled “difficult,” and finding that happy medium is nearly impossible. Anyone who knows me will know that I tend to be fairly reserved, but they know that I’m not afraid to share my opinion if asked. We can get ourselves in some pretty hot water by not asking questions or not challenging a point of view (respectfully, of course!) simply for the sake of not rippling the pond. Politics can have it’s differences and still remain civil – differing opinions is what started America’s journey 250 years ago, after all.
My point today is that I have never gone with the flow just because I didn’t want to speak up and wind up as an outlier. I don’t do things just to make friends or put myself in a position of influence. I’m not saying that I’m going to argue everything if I’m chosen to represent District 1 of the County Council, but I will speak my mind when I feel convicted to do so.
One final thing, I just wanted to say thank you to all who take the time to read my ramblings and offer kind words of encouragement. I will never beg for likes and reposts, but I do always appreciate these things. What I’m doing isn’t about me, it’s about Fulton County and its future. Thanks again!!