The worst thing about elections—especially when they don’t go the way you hope—is that they happen in November. For Cascadians, November means that the sky is clouding over, the six-month drizzle is beginning, and the northern darkness is setting in. Don’t even think about the fact that we won’t see this much daylight again until early February. It’s a bleak time of year!
This year feels especially bleak for a lot of progressives. The economy remains rocky for most of us and downright punishing for some of us; our long labors building climate and energy policy have not borne (enough) fruit; and many of our best solutions feel further away than ever before. If policy had seasons, it would be November. What’s worse—even scary sometimes—is that policy isn’t like the seasons of year. We know that in a few months from now, the days will get longer and brighter as spring returns to the Northwest. But we can’t know when it will get brighter for sustainability. Or if it ever will.
Which is why I am grateful every day that I work for Sightline. Even when November is closing in, I have the good fortune of spending my workdays in the company of some of the most thoughtful and radiant people you could ever hope to meet—working to help bring us all closer to a brighter, sustainable future. They’re almost as good as those full-spectrum lights I keep hearing about. Every morning, I feel a little better when I come in the front door to our offices, fire up the computer, and hear the coffee maker brewing. (Although now that I think about it, it’s probably just my caffeine addiction talking.)
And did I mention smart? Like how. These people are smart, no kidding.
They keep my spirits up. And they keep me confident that if there’s any group of folks who can point the way toward a sunnier future for a sustainable Northwest, it’s them. Yet working for Sightline is in one important way like working for any other nonprofit: it’s an act of faith.
We have faith that Sightline’s community will continue to keep us a reality. Because without your support and generosity—I’m talking about financial generosity here—there is no Sightline. That’s not hyperbole, it’s just the way that an organization like Sightline works. We’re a nonprofit organization and our best ideas are designed to be given away for free. So the only way we can keep the coffee pot full and the lights on—both now and in the future—is when people just like you pay for it.
Our fall fundraising campaign is underway and if you have enjoyed reading our blog, receiving Sightline Daily, used our maps and graphics, or bantered back and forth with me, please make a gift and support our work. We simply cannot do this without you!
