Long gone are the days of rallying behind a passion, a cause, a neighbor. No more are the block parties, the barbecues, the helping hands. Relationships and reciprocity have been replaced with quarrel and rift. Our villages have shrunk to our households.

Our township, our borough and our commonwealth are allowing polarizing topics to divide us. Political affiliations and school board votes suddenly matter more than the quality of your character and the weight of your word. Letters on keyboards are speaking louder than actions.

When did we as a society allow this to happen? Was it the burden of the pandemic? The stress of quarantine and isolation? The immediate need to pivot, shift, to change?

It has been happening for some time, and it has reached a peak. From here, we can continue down a dark road, or we can pause to reflect and we can grow, together.

I choose to learn from the recent past. I choose to reflect on myself and those around me, to learn from situations that have arisen, to become a better person. I choose patience, understanding and empathy. I choose to foster the world I want my children to grow up in. I choose to build a village for them and for me and to unite with others on a similar journey.

I choose to wake up tomorrow optimistic for the future. I hope that you’ll join me and choose the same. I pray that the momentum of our optimism will bring us together as a community — that we can once again come together.

Carley Painter

North Huntingdon

Copyright ©2025— Trib Total Media, LLC (TribLIVE.com)