A Good City

As early voting starts across America, and my newsfeed becomes increasingly populated with passionate partisan declarations, I feel like I should make an endorsesment of my own.

My personal diatribe could take days to craft though, and with two small children just waking up, and a stressful job to prepare for today, I don't have time to wrestle through a verbalization of my political point of view. I doubt that you care anyway.

Here's my thing though, when you a white, Catholic, driven working mom who lives in Mayberry, collaborates with small business owners from across the country every day, has toured the farms and factories and met the people of Illinois, Eastern Kentucky and Oklahoma City that supply the mass food industry, analyze how commodity pricing and trade credits will affect the launch of your next chicken initiative, prepare freshly hunted wild duck for dinner in the fall, have a cousin who is a Major in the U.S. Army, a mom serving on the Bench, a father bridging the many gaps in healthcare, a marriage into the community banking industry, a husband who has actually charted climate change as an oceanographer, family on the far right, and friends that lean farther left, and you truly stop and listen to everyone's unique beef with our country today, the sound judgment you thought you had can suddenly seem flawed.

What I have learned by forming my own internal debates this election season, is there is no easy solution for the systemic issues we face today. Life is so utterly complicated, and governing all the lives, liberties, and pursuits of happiness that make up the fabric of this country is a near impossible duty.

For instance, when debating the challenges and opportunities of Obamacare with my Father in Law the other night, in response to my statement that it is not one person or entities' fault, he asked me, 'then how would you solve it?

My short answer, 'I don't know.'

***

So with that, I'll direct the rest of my election season coverage to employing one optimistic idea of our country that helped me brush aside all the negative rhetoric and confirm my faith and hope in the American people.

In between the 4th and 5th inning (or thereabouts in case my brother corrects me) of the Cubs / Dodgers game, Hillary addressed the public in the third presidential debate with a quote that I believe will become iconic. She said, "America is great, because America is good."

Because we had to switch back to FS1 to see KB, Rizzo and Zobrist bat, I missed the following statements she made, and Trump's rebuttal. It very likely went south from there, but like her or not, the sound bite stuck with me.

Living in a city that can get a bad wrap; murder and crime rates, corruption and waste, unemployment and bankruptcy, the occasional 'loser', all the proof points that the rogue Republican highlights in his tweets; I can't help but see the good, especially in this historic Cubs post season.

From the melting pot of urban dwellers living underneath our beautiful skyline illuminated in red and blue for the Cubbies to the hearty farmers working the corn and soy fields in the rural landscape that encircle the city limits ...

       
From our pristine Lake to the millions of people who run, walk and bike along it each year.
From dumplings, to pierogies, to raviolis, empanadas, enchiladas, and spanokopita.
From fried chicken picnics along the shore to Italian Beef and Mario's Italian Ice on Taylor Street to that perfectly stuffed hot dog at Wrigley.
From the museums, theaters, churches, and galleries, to the posh shopping along the Magnificent Mile.
From the bad Bears, to the better Blackhawks, on to the awesome (and oh so cute) roster of the Cubs.
From the die hard fans, to the fair weather ones.
From our neighborhoods, even the roughest ones, to our neighbors.
I see a whole lot of good, and a whole lot of progress. It's the kind of good that makes America a great place to live, work, and raise a family.

This past weekend, after gathering apples at Honey Hill Orchard in Dekalb, Illinois the weekend before, we broke out the Cider Press again. Neighbors, friends, and family came over to help us crush Empire, Macintosh, Yellow Delicious, and Honeycrisp into fall's sweet syrup. The kids, the weather, the memories of pressing cider with Grandpa Barry and my cousins, the line up of new little hands holding their cups under the tap, all great.

There is no doubt, that all corners of America need help and equal opportunity to jobs, homes, healthcare, education, and safety above all. But there is also no denying that America and the vast majority of its people are good. We just need great leadership to bring us together. And I wonder if it will take the next generation to truly do this.

Lo.