Budget time is always a difficult one for those in public service. Or at least that has been my experience. The struggle to advance your community at a rapid pace is balanced against increasing costs and the belief that taxes should never be increased. For me, it is a lonely time. It is a time when I find myself unable to stop thinking about what I would want to accomplish if we had the means and what I must be missing when people claim that we need to trim the fat in city government or be more disciplined so that taxes don’t increase. I feel as though every word I say carries immense weight because it may be misinterpreted, which could hurt rather than help.
Currently, I’m reading the book Together– The Healing Power of Human Connection in a Sometimes Lonely World by Vivek Murthy, and it has got me thinking about what I’m going through and, presumably, what many others in our community are going through. You might not hear people admit that they are lonely or willing to talk about how they’re feeling at all, but in a world where we are more connected to one another than ever, there is also an epidemic of isolation and loneliness. We have become so ingrained in our virtual selves and how we engage with one another in that virtual world that it’s changing how we interact with each other in person.
What does this have to do with the city? Two glaring things have become very apparent to me. First, we are teaching ourselves that it’s more impactful to make a bold comment or assertion about something than to ask questions and work to gain a deeper understanding. We don’t have time to read an article, so we make our judgment based on the headline. We don’t ask for context about what went into a decision because that would take time and make things less clear in our minds. Lawmakers and policymakers can devise catchy titles and acronyms that evoke support, and since few will inquire about the details, the sound bite or headline is all that matters. This leads people to support things that they probably wouldn’t have had they known the details or speak out against based solely on their limited understanding. Secondly, we are spending less time engaging with our neighbors, and it’s eroding our sense of community. When we don’t engage with our neighbors and instead retreat inside our homes to focus on our screens and ourselves, looking out for our neighbors and taking care of our neighborhoods fails to be a priority.
Instead, if we focus on getting to know one another and supporting each other, I feel a few repercussions can be felt throughout an entire community. We start supporting local businesses because we know the staff and owners. We want to see them succeed. We notice when kids or individuals seem like they’re up to no good and may engage in vandalism, so we say something to stop it because our neighbors would do the same for us. We help pick up litter in our parks and on our streets because they are an integral part of our home. We check in on one another and invest in those relationships. Whether they are close friends or just another person in the grocery store, we smile at them and say hello. These small things have a cascading effect that I feel bolsters community pride, helps businesses succeed, and lowers the temperature and divisiveness in the comments section. We’re all in this together. I’m certainly not perfect, but I’m committed to trying my best. I hope you’ll join me. Your community depends on you.
By Alex Watters
