I have lived in Park City for 28 years now and have seen my fair share of changes — grocery store names, ski resort names, longtime restaurants and shops close, traffic issues, endless dog complaints, development drama, etc. Yes, some of these changes are just a natural part of growth — some good, some bad. It does us well to remember that our mountains surround us with beauty and wonderful opportunities to get out and do what we love — hike, ski, bike and play! I have loved living here and feel so thankful for all that Park City offers and the amazing friends that I have found over these years. Recently, however, I have found myself loving Park City less and less and have determined that a lot of how I am feeling is due to the way some people are behaving.

We all worry about our kids and their “generation.” We blame social media, drugs, entitlement issues and lack of work ethic on many of the problems in schools and sports and community. But what about the parents and adults in our community? What about their actions? Some of the behavior I have witnessed or heard about makes me feel sick: threatening school administrators, bullying coaches to the point that they quit, yelling at volunteers, criticizing athletes. We are chasing away the people that our kids need. How is this OK? How is this modeling the behavior we want from the next generation? How can we blame our kids when their role models are acting this way?

We are better than this.

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We have a very generous community. Especially when it comes to donating money to the causes we care about. The fact that as a community we can raise $2.4 million in ONE day is insane! But what about the generosity of our hearts and our empathy for one another? Where has that piece gone? Actions speak louder than words. Has it become easier to just write the check?

We are better than this.

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I encourage you to take a deep breath and look around at this amazing town that we are lucky enough to live in. Stop and think — are you helping or just complaining? How can you make a difference? How can you be adding value as a parent, as a member of the community? How can your actions guide the youth of Park City?

It’s a slippery slope when we are focusing on what we are missing instead of what we have. Focusing on what’s wrong and what’s challenging us, instead of counting the abundance that surrounds us. We need to be finding ways to be grateful for what we have and to focus on the good not the bad.

We are better than this.

“Always be kind, because you don’t know the battles that other people are fighting” has become a commonplace meme, but there is a reason for that. Because it is true. Take a minute, take a breath and reach out a hand. Smile at a stranger. Try to find our way back to the community that brought us here.

Thank you to everyone that works so hard to keep the community alive here in Park City.