New Year’s Eve is upon us, and as we celebrate with parties, fireworks and countdowns to midnight, it’s only natural to look back on the year that was.
In the pages of this newspaper, you’ll read about some of the headline-grabbing events that happened in your town: seniors fighting for their rights in Edmonds, and fighting for a place of their own in Mill Creek. In Shoreline, residents are protesting the possibility of a new jail in their backyard. Lynnwood and Mountlake Terrace are both facing the remodeling and construction of new city buildings.
But New Year’s is also a time to look forward — it’s a time to begin with a clean slate, a chance to start over and start fresh. This is when we resolve to make ourselves better — lose weight, quit smoking, exercise more, whatever.
But we’d like to suggest taking a wider approach to your New Year’s resolutions; in addition to improving yourself, resolve to improve the world around you. We can think of a couple of ways to start:
• Give to a local charity. Even if you can’t make a monetary donation in this recession, you can always volunteer your time. Just an hour a week can make a big difference in someone’s life.
• Get involved in your city. Attend a neighborhood or city council meeting, and tell your city officials what you think about the issues. And don’t just complain – offer suggestions, too.
Gandhi once said, “Be the change you want to see in the world.” As we roll into 2009, try to be the change in your own small corner of the world.
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