The new year offers us a chance to reflect and assess an official evaluation of our values, our actions and our duties to others.

I want to thank the people in our community that have placed their trust in their elected officials to make things better for everyone that reside here. Whether they are mistakes or problems we made or inherited, they still are our problems to solve.

Now is the time for elected officials and the community to come together for a resolution in moving forward for the future. The blame game should be over and a more positive attitude must exist.

I realize that we live in a litigious society, and for many people, the first thought is to hold someone financially responsible when things don’t turn out well. I have never understood the impulse to be honest or correct when it serves no purpose but to hurt, when you can show compassion and tactfulness and avoid ill will.

I believe while the law cannot control a person’s heart; it can restrict the heartless. We must keep in mind that people are with you for only a season. Everyone who is with you isn’t always for you.

I believe God prepares you to go forward on your own for a better opportunity. You will continue to meet others who will push you farther up the road.

We must continue to realize that circumstances can change but character doesn’t. When something new or change comes along, don’t be surprised if ignorance, suspicion and violence don’t follow.

Inequality isn’t a burden you have to accept, but a challenge to overcome. So don’t be content with being average, because average is as close to the bottom as it is to the top. If we never consider the origin of our journey, how can we determine how far we have traveled?

My wife and I thank God for the biblical phrase about the ram in the bush that He, working through people, provided us with help through our operations, disabilities and necessities to a successful recovery. We wish to express our gratitude to the entire staff of Lula City Hall, Gainesville city officials, Hall County Sheriff’s Office, Gainesville Therapy staff and especially friends from Phoenix, Ariz., who stayed night and day with me after I returned from the hospital until I was able to maneuver sufficiently on my own.

Once in a while in life, you will find those who go beyond ordinary care to excellent care. This happened to me when I was in rehab. A wonderful student nurse, after working her shift all night, came to my floor and got me out of bed, put me in a wheelchair, rolled me down the hallway and the elevator to the main dinning hall for breakfast, paid for it, and returned me to my room.

During the Christmas holidays, as her parents came to visit her from Dayton, Ohio, she invited me to dinner to meet her family. I was treated with dignity and was made a member of her family.

I am grateful to everyone who has been there for me in my time of need. My prayer for this year is, Lord keep your arm around my shoulder and your hand over my mouth.