“Our democracy must be not only the envy of the world but the engine of our own renewal. There is nothing wrong with America that cannot be cured by what is right with America.” — William J. Clinton
America is not perfect.
You are not perfect.
None of us are perfect, have never been perfect, and never will be perfect.
We all mess up, sometimes lose our way and wander and wonder what we need to do.
But even though we have messed up, we have made right choices in the past. We have done the right things, whether it is working hard at school or giving extra at a job. We have had good influences and shining stars in our life even if we are now lost in darkness.
Those stars can guide us out of darkness. Those lights can be beacons calling us back to doing the right things.
We won’t correct our issues, as individuals or organizations or as a country, overnight. Rome was not built in a day it is said, nor did the empire deteriorate and fall in a single night no matter how long the darkness seemed.
The plurality of ideas and experiences is core to the American experience and ideal, but it is in the unifying of these towards a great goal where we have exhibited excellence over and over again, whether it was putting a man on the moon or the building of our cities or rock n roll. We need different ideas coming together in the present, drawing from our pasts, to make a better future for all.