We are all searching for meaningful answers to life’s perplexing questions. We focus on one only to find that another has reared its scaly head. It seems no one has a clear answer that covers the needs of all. What to do about it?

Some of us are “on the street.” Some of us will write letters to the editor. Some of us may post on Facebook. Some of us may do nothing. Which of these seems to mirror your mode de operandi?

May I suggest that if you don’t “show up” for your needs, you are abdicating your right to complain. Answers will be forthcoming from those who decide to let their needs to known. And don’t try to tell me that it doesn’t matter…that the politicians don’t care about what the people want…that they will do what they want to do.

I admit that this does indeed happen in our own towns, in Augusta and in Washington, D.C. But I want you to remember that once there was no women’s right to vote. Only a few women (and far fewer men), working for 20 years and more, demanded the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which reads, “The right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any State on account of sex.” Women were jailed, beaten, physically and verbally abused, but they did not give up. And today we benefit from their daunting courage. Goal accomplished!.

And remember that only a few people demanded civil rights for blacks. Blacks were jailed, beaten, murdered, verbally and physically abused, but they did not give up. But today we benefit from their daunting courage. Their struggle continues today.

And don’t forget, as of November 2012 in Maine, people who identify as gay, lesbian, or bi-sexual can now marry, which comes with the benefits offered to “straight” couples. Backers of the “Yes on One” were vilified, denied opportunities and their civil rights. Yet today we all benefit from their daunting courage. Their struggle continues today in other states, and eventually by our elected officials in Washington, D.C. Maine in the forefront again!

We live in a world bristling with choices. We are called to obtain correct information on guns, tar sands, drones, water quality, healthcare and more.

As my friend, Lisa Savage, an activist and schoolteacher, says, “When we become aware of a great moral issue, it’s good for the soul to decide on which side we will stand.”

So, where do you stand on the many-sided issue of guns and their presence in society; of tar sands oil in Maine next to our precious water supply; of drones and their effect on our conscience; of our access to clean and plentiful water and its effect on our daily existence; of affordable and quality healthcare and its effect on the lives of the next seven generations? And, because these are all moral issues, on which side will you stand?

Can you guess on which side I stand on the issues? Shall I see you “on the street?”

Sally Breen lives in Windham, and has a clear-eyed and informed vision of a better world.