I've gotten a few emails lately from people encouraging me to keep going in the midst of a very difficult time. One woman noted that with my being so outspoken about the issues related to public safety union contracts, it can't be very comfortable for me right now. That's putting it mildly!
But it's not very comfortable for anybody in Vallejo right now. It's a difficult time for all of us, but profound change is always difficult and messy and uncomfortable. If it wasn't, we'd all make changes more often!
And the changes that Vallejo is making right now are incredibly profound. We are changing our city government, we are taking our city's future back into our own hands, we are creating a city that provides opportunities to all of our residents and not just a select few.
I recently read a book that highlighted people who had effected both small and large changes in their communities. They shared one quality -- they all faced difficult opposition, but they kept their eyes on their goals and didn't get sidetracked by the critics and hurtful words being flung about.
"History is littered with anonymous characters whose job it is to discourage, dissuade and disdain anyone from doing much of anything new or different, anything that might upset the status quo…Don't Listen…Because committing to something or someplace or someone is not easy. Hardly ever. Almost never."
So, Vallejo, keep your heads up. We're making great change here. Stay above the fray. Don't lower yourselves to the nasty name-calling and hate-fill rants on the Times-Herald blogs. Remember that we're all going though a difficult time, but when we come out on the other side, our city will be on the right path towards reaching that potential we all hope for and talk about.
