PERSPECTIVE FROM THE 19^TH HOLE: This is the title I chose for my personal blog, which is meant to give me an outlet for one of my favorite crafts – writing – plus use an image from my favorite sport, golf. Out of college, my first job was as a reporter for the Daily Astorian in Astoria, Oregon, and I went on from there to practice writing in all of my professional positions, including as a Congressional press secretary in Washington, D.C., an Oregon state government manager in Salem and Portland, press secretary for Oregon’s last Republican governor (Vic Atiyeh), and a private sector lobbyist. This blog also allows me to link another favorite pastime – politics and the art of developing public policy – to what I write.

I don’t have a major prescription for what ails our country, the risks of which have been outlined along in my blogs.

Are we headed for another civil war, as some suggest? That strikes me as a bit of an overstatement, though there is much to be of concern to us as we continue to exist under a U.S. president who capitalizes on every opportunity to stoke fear and discord.

So, without “big thoughts” in my head, I prefer to think that, each of us, in our own way, can influence the direction of this country if we take action, one action at a time. The issue is not yelling at those who disagree with us – or worse, what has been advocated by U.S. Representative Maxine Waters who called for the mobs to hassle those who work for the federal administration.

The challenge, as I have written before, is finding the smart middle ground to save our democracy.

So, without a major prescription, I resort to the simple and straightforward, which, some of you will say, is easy for me.

It is possible, I submit, to take simple actions every day to improve the character of how we live. Without setting myself up as any kind of example, one of the actions I have learned to take is to thank at least one person for helping me each day. Sometimes the thank-you is in person; other times, it is by e-mail or text.

Or, I often think of taking action to help someone else without needing to be thanked because the action is reward in and of itself.

Just think of what such actions could mean if they were taken by everyone, every day! It won’t change the world, but it will make your world a better place.

We wouldn’t just be arguing over what Trump is doing or not doing. We’d be thinking about how to influence others, even in some small way, to live more positively in our world.

As I reflected on this, I came across an article in the Washington Post, an interview with a current poet, Cleo Wade, who is making her mark in this country, though I confess it is a mark I have missed until now.

Here is an excerpt of what I read about Wade in the Post:

“’I love you,’ Wade says before hanging up and turning to embrace a reporter she has just met. Anyone could have been on the other end of the line — she professes her love quite often, directed over the course of our afternoon conversation at everyone from her fans to TV show crushes. A tattoo along Wade’s left thumb reads ‘Love. Why wouldn’t you?’

“But it is not a word the 29-year-old artist uses lightly. She pours the feeling into her work, which largely consists of handwritten poetry dispensed on social media and in her new book, ‘Heart Talk.’ The comment sections below Insta-gram posts of her self-affirming mantras — such as ‘Maybe don’t be the one you are waiting on’ and ‘Don’t let your heart get in the way of new love’ — are littered with heart emoji and grateful messages.

“The work (Wade’s) appeals to modern culture’s desire for brevity while still managing to captivate its audience of primarily millennial women. Somehow, Wade avoids coming off as superficial to them — a seemingly miraculous feat most of her generation’s ‘Insta-gram poets’ have yet to master.

“So brief are Wade’s words that four separate aphorisms fit on the back cover of her book:

“You are more okay than you think.”

“Not every ground is a battleground.”

“Know the value of knowing your value.”

“Baby, you are the strongest flower that ever grew — remember that when the weather changes.”

Superficial, you say. Perhaps, especially in our day of very complicated and controversial matters in life and especially in politics. But, for me, Wade’s aphorisms strike home in a way that mimics what the Bible teaches about everyday life. Know your value as a human being. Know that not every ground is a battleground. And know that God wants you to love others, even if they don’t agree with you or rank as similar to you in status or nationality.

A sound affirmation as we have just passed a major holiday for our country, Independence Day on the Fourth of July!