Tell Me Something Good

 – By

Do you remember that song? When I visit with any negative Nelly, I always sing that song in my head while I am listening to everything that is wrong in the world.

I was visiting with a concerned business owner the other day about how things are going in our community… or at least how he felt they were going at this point in his day. I listened to his concerns about our community and the businesses for sale. He went on and on about the bad and the ugly about everything he thought was going on but not mentioning anything good about Hand County.

When it was my turn, I reminded him that there is so much good to be celebrating. I challenged him to tell me something good about our area? Tell me ONE good thing… he had more than one and didn’t even know it.

Tell Me Something Good….

  • Business is really good. Sales tax numbers are up from the past five years. He went on to say how many people he has served in his business that he has never seen before and how great it is to see so many new faces.
  • New faces. Have you noticed all the new faces around? I see them in the grocery store, at the gas stations, met some new faces at the teacher meet and greet on Tuesday and at an event in the park this summer. New faces are something good for our entire community. Wait, did he say event?
  • There was something going on every weekend this summer in Hand County. He really enjoyed the race track, the Drive In, the golf course, the events in Crystal Park, and the 1st Annual Ree Heights Roundup. 

I let him go on and on listening about the events and how much fun we have right here in Hand County. When he finished, his attitude was completely different than when he walked in. He is still concerned don’t get me wrong, but he is also very thankful for the community we get to live in. The community we get to live in that supports our small businesses, has new faces coming in, and has quality of life events for people of all ages.

I followed up with a few more wonderful things going on in our community to lift his spirits. I mentioned the work the City Council is doing with all new infrastructure, pool committee fundraising for a new pool, the baseball association making the ball park better, the Legion making improvements, how busy the Community Center is, the new park in St. Lawrence, the improvements and additions at Crystal Park, the newish events by the Miller Civic and Commerce (Smoke on the Prairie, Christmas Light Show in Crystal Park and the Sip N Shop) new business owners buying businesses and being back in our school building.

I know things get tough and sometimes it looks bleak for rural communities. I also know that Hand County has it going on. We have been through some tough times before and we will get through tough again. We have the sales, faces and events to prove we have lots of good here. Tell me something good. Stop by office or give me a call if you have an idea or project to make our community the best it can be. We always need people stepping up.


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