Sometimes thankfulness takes a change of perspective

Arguments were heard this week by a Cole County circuit court in a lawsuit state officials have filed against each other, essentially, to decide how money for the Missouri Department of Transportation is spent.

Members of the Missouri Senate saw a 31-hour filibuster that started Monday over how to redraw Missouri’s Congressional map. It is a situation that is unlikely to be resolved quickly or cleanly.

The Missouri attorney general is suing Missouri schools over how local officials decide to keep children safe in a national health crisis.

It can feel like there is no progress to be found sometimes when you look at big decisions that need to be made for our state.

But this week, Poplar Bluff schools have done a significant amount of work on the remodel of a historical Poplar Bluff bank building. Dr. Scott Dill told the Daily American Republic he hopes to see the current administration building become a leader in educating teachers.

Drive by the Shelby Road site of the new Poplar Bluff Police Department and you’ll see construction making great strides every week there.

And more steps were taken this week in a project to four-lane Highway 67 south to the Arkansas border, an infrastructure project that has already brought new factories to Poplar Bluff.

Construction of another new factory for the city is also in the works.

It can be easy to focus too hard on one area and feel like there’s very little hope of improvement. But it’s all a matter of perspective. Sometimes shifting your focus can offer a reminder that we truly do have a lot to be thankful for.