BY: RACHEL WUMKES
There’s a bit of a different feel this Friday as I sit down to write the “Feel Good Friday” blog. In this new blog series, the focus has been to highlight any and all amazing aspects of the previous week. To show examples of Clear Lakers pulling together, rising above the pandemic and all it’s obstacles, and to find the good in our tumultuous world.
I’m not going to lie; this week has been a struggle. With the Tuesday announcement that we will not be able to hold our regularly scheduled 4th of July extravaganza at the Lake, the weight of it all became a bit heavy on our shoulders.
None of us want these things to be cancelled. I wish we could have them all, that life could go back to normal. Unfortunately, it’s just not feasible at this time.
The bright light through the entire ordeal was the many messages of support we received. We want to offer you a heartfelt ‘thank you’ for providing us with a bit of good in a difficult situation. Your comments are what pulled us through.
What many of you are feeling right now… it’s called grief. Seems odd to call it that. Typically, we talk about grief after the loss of a loved one. But grief can pop up over the loss of anything, really. Something like this, the 4th of July festivities, have gone on for so many years. Family gatherings are held year after year, coinciding with the massive event.
When that’s taken away, it’s hard to cope with the loss. I get it. I really do.
But we have choices in life. You can either sit behind your keyboard, blasting comments and spewing anger, or you can accept it and move on. No one is ‘taking away your freedom’ and no one is ‘cancelling life.’
You may not realize this… but pulling off the 4th of July event is a massive undertaking. It takes months of preparation, planning, and organization. The committee meets all year to make sure it’s a success year after year. Booking bands, securing sponsors, setting up the parade… none of these things just happen. They are the effort of hundreds of people; city officials, chamber staff, the police department, and A LOT of volunteers. We work and work and work to provide you with a free multi-day event.
So, the theme of this Feel Good Friday is kindness.
Be kind.
Coming from someone who has experienced a tremendous loss in their life – how you move forward after that loss is on you. You can either sit home and sulk about how unfair and awful everything is, or you can create a life of positivity and happiness for yourself.
Take a moment, be upset and sad at the loss of your tradition, and then move on. Straighten your shoulders, lift that chin, and make it amazing anyway. Choose to do so.
And along the way, it wouldn’t hurt to have a little compassion and understanding for the many people who had to make this unbelievably difficult decision. This hasn’t been easy on them, and they are devastated too.
Together, we need to rise. Not fall. We need to band together for our community so when this whole pandemic is over, we can go back to living our best life at the lake. Back to having events, back to normalcy and doing all the things we do.
So please, be kind. Continue to support your local businesses. Eat out. Shop local.
We are Clear Lake, and we will rise together.