Maintaining Small Communities

If large cities are designed to allow people to feel empowered to soar and small communities help people develop the innate ability to embrace love, kindness, and compassion how did the world become so jumbled and confused?

This is the question that I chose to explore after having completed and submitted my own compilation of novels, screenplays, and children's books. Allow the other authors of the world the freedom to explore what they feel they should or must. I feel that my calling is to determine how people (and most importantly, small communities) become lost in a world of conflicting interests, where profit and capital consume too much space within the universe.

Earlier this week, I was invited (or appointed, as the letter actually explained it to me) to attend a fully paid training session to once again greet people, meet and briefly speak with them, and encourage them to remain brave and enthusiastic as they cast their votes. While I wondered why an accomplished novelist, screenwriter, and children's book author would be included in this venture, I understood that there must be a greater design in scheme working around us.

It does not need to be stated that there is a strict level of privacy and confidentiality that immediately goes into effect surrounding the sensitive nature of this work. Obviously, the people selected for this endeavor are special individuals who are highly specialized and valued members in their communities and professions. For an author who still remains skeptical concerning the motivation behind so many literary works, who at times feels that overwhelming wave of skepticism lingering around every time she reads a new book review or biography within a review about the author, I was left wondering-- why invite an author at all? Somehow it must be about trust and respect.

Admittedly, the concept that screenwriters and movie stars are not treated equally was not lost on me at all. As I sat in a seat near the back wall and adjacent to the door within the expansive room of the chamber of commerce, I could not help but notice the more than one hundred members of our community who sat within and milled about the room. Had a movie star who would appear in any of my screenplays been selected rather than me, she would undoubtedly have been provided with at the least a glass of the most premium water in an expertly artistically crafted glass. Possibly she would have even been provided with a security person to ensure her safety. Yet, for an author-- well, perhaps the circuit clerks and judges wanted me to have a more inclusive and contemporary view of how small communities gather and work in harmony with each other. As it turns out, this is exactly, what I found.

I am an individual who has become keenly aware of the hyper sensationalism of contemporary news. We are now in an era where we allow one news program to cancel out all the others and then we sit and question the motives behind the individuals who are broadcasting this information into our homes. After all, why trust any of them? Has any of their staff ever stepped foot into our hallways or corridors before pushing any agenda upon us? Have they weighed the merit of the dialogue they push against the therapy bills which their rhetoric has perpetuated?

I should probably not share with you that I have already knocked upon a few local attorney's doors in an effort to gain representation to get my completed literary work turned into solid print and made available in bookstores. This has not been an easy endeavor. I have written letters to local judicial teams, politicians, and even national figureheads concerning my ambitions. Still, no response and no indication that my work has been moved ahead any more quickly than policy delegates.

So, back the original question, why was I seated amidst this room of people who were now filling every seat and standing against the rear wall? Why was a prolific author, an astute local teacher who understood every caveat about politics and U.S. History, and a prominent judge sitting through an hour training session teaching the importance of voting regulations and confidentiality? Was it possible that there was something more still waiting to be uncovered?

As an author, my initial reaction is to always search beyond the labels and limitations posed by culture and society. In a small community, that means seeing beyond the politics and peering into the raw emotions that create any type of evolving controversy. No, I will never betray any confidence. I will not become involved within a scandal or even allow my conduct or writing to allow so much as the whisper of a rumor to emerge. Still, one must wonder if there is something beyond the controversy that has been stirred up.

As I sat amongst these people, I became keenly aware that each one of them carried their own concerns with them which emanated from their body posture and even the emotional lines and curves etched across their faces. Each one of these people were representing their neighborhoods, their children's schools, and their workplaces. We are in a society where even the tiniest cog is an entire system has the potential to create a major wave if it becomes unbalanced. There must be teams and committees in place to protect these people.

Ironically, as I sat amidst this large group within this expansive room, I could not help but recall the character Rob Petrie from the classic sitcom The Dick Van Dyke Show. Rob was continually balancing his work with caring and providing for his family and keeping up with social and community obligations. during this hour, I recalled that perhaps he was the only character who could provide any sense of resemblance to this situation. As ironic as that may sound to you.

There are so many unique caveats to keep in mind while maintaining small communities. Local churches, schools, community centers, and small businesses need to be honored and respected. Only highly respected and special community members deeply care and understand how the function of the economy affects the livelihoods and concerns of the community. Obviously, small communities do not function economically as well as their larger urban counterparts, but is it fair to simply understand that and leave it at that? Should there be more effort and action in planning for the economic growth and security of all members within each small community?

So, as I continue on with this process and with my writing, I will carry these concerns with me until more people step into respected roles and take a stance to nurture and foster growth for the benefit and welfare of these communities.

Regards,

Melissa L. Blizzard