Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
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4 MARCH 16-22, 2016 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM Time is short. It's fleeting. In a blink of an eye, things change, times change, people change. If we are lucky, we grow and become better in those moments. Over the past weekend, I've thought a lot about time and how quickly it goes. The catalyst for my pondering on time was an unlikely source – a Garth Brooks concert. With a large cohort of North Carolinians, I made the trek to Raleigh to see Brooks in one of his three shows in our capital. Oddly enough, my 15-year-old son is what took me to the concert. He is what some would call an "old soul." He loves music – all kinds – from Johnny Cash to The Knack to Bad Company to Garth Brooks. So, it was at his urging that I purchased tickets to the show as his Christmas present. Listening to Brooks sing his hit list, I was carried back to different times in my life and what those songs meant to me then and what they mean to me now. It's amazing how their meaning has changed in my current stage of life. And, on Saturday night, it hit me that my little boy is now a young man. It also hit me that this young man will truly only be mine for two more years, and then, he will spread his wings and move on to college and what I believe will be a successful life. That's a hard realization for a mother – but not a scary one. I believe that with the help of a loving community of teachers, mentors and friends who are family, we have given our boy the tools that he needs to succeed in this crazy thing called life. I see this in the way he deals with conflict, in the way he steps up to be a leader, in the way that although he is big, he always takes care of the littles. Even knowing that he is more than ready to take on what life throws at him, I am saddened that my generation and the previous generations have failed his generation in so many ways. We have left our world a pretty chaotic mess. Common decency and respect for human life seem to be at an all-time low; of course, countless other generations have probably felt the same. But I haven't lived them or watched the decay of all that I believe is good about America. This past week has made that abundantly clear. Demonstrations, protests, fights – all over the election – have dominated the news cycle. It is beyond comprehension that freedom-loving people cannot have an intelligent debate and agree to disagree without becoming violent. But that comes down to the hard truth that we have so devalued life and freedom that a majority of Americans do not exercise their greatest freedom: their right to vote. And a vocal few shout down the voices of reason and feed the fire of chaos. This has to stop. Time passes quickly. Words said can't get unsaid and a gun can't be unfired. America is hard work. It is a struggle. But it's one that is worth it. Freedom has a price, and for many in our nation, that ideal is coming home to roost. Time passes quickly. We need to stop the political gamesmanship and hate-filled dialogue that is tearing down this great nation. And we have to do it one person at a time. It's up to you. It's up to me and it's up to young men like my son who are coming of age to recognize that the greatness of America is worth saving – even if it is one word at a time. PUBLISHER'S PEN Saving America One Person at a Time by JANICE BURTON Fayetteville's Weather Forecast Call 910-354-1679 for more info. March 16 Partly Cloudy March 17 PM Showers March 18 Showers March 19 Sunny March 20 Mostly Sunny March 21 Partly Cloudy THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY HIGH 77 HIGH 70 HIGH 67 HIGH 64 HIGH 66 HIGH 68 LOW 51 LOW 51 LOW 42 LOW 43 LOW 44 LOW 47 STAFF PUBLISHER Bill Bowman Bill@upandcomingweekly.com ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Janice Burton editor@upandcomingweekly.com EDITOR Stephanie Crider stephanie@upandcomingweekly.com SENIOR REPORTER Jeff Thompson news@upandcomingweekly.com ART DIRECTOR & GRAPHIC DESIGNER Sara Smith art@upandcomingweekly.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS D.G. Martin, Pitt Dickey, Margaret Dickson, John Hood, Erinn Crider, Jim Jones, Shanessa Fenner, Heather Griffiths SALES ADMINISTRATOR/ DISTRIBUTION MANAGER Laurel Handforth laurel@upandcomingweekly.com ACCOUNTING Paulette Naylor accounting@upandcomingweekly.com MARKETING/SALES Karla Allen karla@womensviewnc.com Linda McAlister Brown linda@upandcomingweekly.com Beverly Pone beverlypone@upandcomingweekly.com Melissa Zalaznik womensview@gmail.com ––––––––––– Up & Coming Weekly www.upandcomingweekly.com 208 Rowan Street P.O. Box 53461 Fayetteville, NC 28305 PHONE: (910) 484-6200 FAX: (910) 484-9218 Up & Coming Weekly is a "Quality of Life" publication with local features, news and infor- mation on what's happening in and around the Fayetteville/Cumberland County community. Up & Coming Weekly is published weekly on Wednesdays. Up & Coming Weekly welcomes manuscripts, photographs and artwork for publi- cation consideration, but assumes no responsibil- ity for them. We cannot accept responsibility for the return of unsolicited manuscripts or material. Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher. The publisher reserves the right to edit or reject copy submitted for publication. Up & Coming Weekly is free of charge and distributed at indoor and outdoor locations throughout Fayetteville, Fort Bragg, Pope Air Force Base, Hope Mills and Spring Lake. Readers are limited to one copy per person. ©2007 by F&B Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction or use of editorial or advertisements without permission is strictly prohibited. JANICE BURTON, Associate Publisher, UP & COMING WEEKLY. COMMENTS? Edi- tor@upandcomingweekly.com. 910.484.6200. America is worth saving. We all play a part in that.