It’s like in high school, when people would say student government, prom king or queen and homecoming court are all popularity contests. The well-known people always win. It was networking before we even knew what it was.

While I appreciate having many options in a gas station, I draw the line when I am waiting forever to check out and the building is holding too many people. Fun fact: Every time I step foot in a Buc-ee’s, I am crammed in there like a sardine and I am run over by someone who apparently can’t wait another moment to buy the beef jerky they’re addicted to. Not worth it.

It only takes reading a few news articles each day to increase attention span, slow aging and improve one’s conversational skills.

Remember the words of Abraham Lincoln, who, honestly, lived in a time of much deeper division than we do. “A house divided cannot stand,” he said, echoing the gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke. He knew it then, and we know it now: America has two choices.

Political polarization in America has gone beyond debates and ballot boxes, driving wedges between loved ones and turning neighbors into adversaries. As ideological divides deepen and tensions escalate, can we find a way to reclaim civil discourse, or are we destined to live in a nation where division and distrust define us?

In such a polarized political environment, the loudest action you can take is saying nothing at all. If people want to make assumptions about your character based on stereotypes, your ethnicity or even your age, let them.