Making A Difference

Ever so often, I check out what the buzz is all about at Buzzflash.com. Today, however, instead of feeling gloom and doom, I read a glimmer of hope.

If, in your community's quest of positive development, you have never heard of Curitiba in Brazil, then you really should check them out. Although my community is small and rural, we are still primarily hindered by many who spend so much time and effort to deny change.

With two major highways that bisect our community, we have easily become disconnected with each other and with the center of our small community. Our downtown sees more truck traffic than shoppers stopping to do business. The downtown truck traffic is just as much of an eye sore as the once beautiful old 19th century buildings that continue to decline and rot, regardless of their occupancy.

It seems almost unimaginable to transform a town center in a week, let alone a weekend. But Curitiba did it. And they aren't a rich community by any means.

Reading this excerpt inspired me knowing that although the local elections are over, it doesn't mean that we as caring, concerned citizens stop acting to help our communities. In fact, now is the time to start kicking our concern into overdrive and make change a good thing.