How do we stay positive, optimistic, and hopeful for the future of Gippsland when just about everything about our world has been turned upside down during the pandemic?
The simple answer is it’s not going to be easy, and it’s tempting to just give up and say it’s all too hard.
I’m certainly not going to give you glib advice and urge everyone to toughen up, channel the ANZAC spirit, or just count your blessings and remember those who are worse off.
Because right now it’s hard for a lot of people in our community. The economic uncertainty on top of the health-related restrictions are eroding people’s confidence and making it difficult to see the pathway forward.
On top of the drought, bushfires, flooding and storms, our resilience has been tested by this pandemic and it’s only human to feel disappointed and frustrated by the things we have had to postpone, or missed out on completely.
Former Victorian Premier Jeff Kennett wrote an article this week reflecting on the fact that we had high hopes for 2022, but it hasn’t started well for many people.
It is hard to remain optimistic with shops and businesses closing because they can’t secure staff, exhausted health workers, and worries about whether schools can open safely as planned. This is not what we all wanted for 2022.
However, Kennett wrote that we cannot shut down our lives, and stop making plans for the future. We have to believe that better days are coming.
“We must believe that collectively, together we will emerge with a greater respect for what we had. A slightly different society. Maybe some major challenges to address and overcome and from which to learn and improve. We must believe in our capacity as a society to overcome the disruptions to our lives today, to rebuild, and to look after those who are less fortunate.”
There’s an old saying that ‘if you believe you can, or believe you can’t, either way you are right’.
It’s up to the hopeful, optimistic, confident and more fortunate amongst us to lend a helping hand right now to those who may be struggling physically, mentally or financially. We have to believe in ourselves and each other as Gippslanders.
This is a time for the leaders in our communities to work together and demonstrate a belief in the future of Gippsland and its people. We do that by practical action - by simply getting stuff done in our community.
For me, as an elected representative, that means working with State and Local Government, and our community, to deliver the projects that we’ve been promised. It means focusing on the things that matter in people’s lives - jobs, schools, health services, aged care, childcare, transport, telecommunications etc - and not becoming distracted by irrelevant issues.
For you, it means doing your best as a student, employee or business owner to achieve your full potential. Maybe it means volunteering to join a community group or sporting organisation and becoming involved in something that interests you?
Or it might mean taking simple action to make your community a better place by picking up a bag of rubbish in your street, mowing the lawns for an elderly neighbour or talking positively to a young family member about the future.
We might find that when we are feeling overwhelmed by global events and everything seems too hard, just taking simple and practical action locally, and getting stuff done in our own community, can give us the belief we need to keep going.
It’s hard to be optimistic and hopeful when the challenges seem huge but every day I see Gippslanders doing their little bit to make a difference in their own way. I take enormous comfort from the strength of others, and the knowledge that previous generations have overcome incredible adversity to build the community I love today.
We all need to be believe we can do it together.
Best wishes to everyone for the year ahead. And remember to be kind and take care of yourself, and the people you love.
Never give up… and maybe stop to smell the roses too!
Melina Bath
#lovegippsland
