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COMMUNITY FORUM
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BY RABBI MICHAEL BIRNHOLZ
choose to put the referendum on the ballot now? Why not wait until terms of the lease are known? So the question to be asked is will the failure of the referendum kill the sale to FPL? Or is this just more hype and assumptions? It is disingenuous to scare people into thinking all negotiations will stop if the referendum fails. Let’s wait until such time that the terms of the lease are known and then put out a referendum. No more scare tactics please. This sale is very complicated. With the recent news regarding the possibility of other companies who may be interested in purchasing Vero Beach Electric Utility, wouldn’t you be cutting off your
nose to spite your face if you went ahead with a lease at this time? The sale is still probably years away. As has been stated, most of us will be dead before we get cheaper electric rates. One of Vero’s highly paid transactional attorneys stated that though FP&L would like to have an agreement ready for consideration as soon as possible, it may not be ready until the end of the year. Some have stated perhaps the sale of Vero Beach Electric Utility System may take as long as two to three years. Hmmm. When the sale of the electric utility takes place, wouldn’t we want the conditions of the lease to be negotiated as part of the sale? For
instance, voters should know how many years will be on the lease, the financial impact of the lease/ sale, and who is responsible for dismantling the plant at the end of the lease. It’s time to say… enough to scare tactics and just say no to the referendum. This referendum is definitely putting the cart before the horse. The voters in the City of Vero Beach should not vote on any referendum regarding a lease of THEIR land until such time that they know the terms of the lease. This referendum needs to be voted down. Bea Gardner Vero Beach
N E W S W E E K L Y
To the Editor: There are those that say if the Nov. 8 referendum on the power plant fails it will kill the sale to Florida Power & Light, or at least severely damage it. I say that is hogwash. There is no lease at present between the city and FP&L. This Council needs to show the voter’s terms of a lease before asking the voters for permission to lease the land. On the one hand the Council says a lease is needed in order to sell to FPL, but on the other it is not giving any details on the lease just yet. The Council is saying the terms of the lease will be negotiated down the road. Why did this Council
B E A C H
Are ‘scare tactics’ being used regarding referendum?
V E R O
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
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not, what needed to be repotted or just thinned out) I saw a new sprout. After at least six months but maybe even more the Cassia, long given up as a failure suddenly decided it was time to grow. As I check on these new plants, so long dormant, I realize that all of my time management and awareness has to be steeped in patience and perseverance. I have to work conscientiously on what is in my control, but I also have to create space to let the world grow and develop around me. It is the balance of the two, the harmony of what I give to the world and what the world offers back that brings success to my worthy endeavors in their time. Rabbi Michael Birnholz has served Temple Beth Shalom in Vero Beach since 2002. One of his goals is bringing Jewish values and wisdom to the wider community.
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some seeds that seem to germinate as soon as you plant them in the ground. Within a few days you have a growing plant with new leaves and buds all over it. Other seeds take a little longer. After a week or so a sprout will appear. Then, one must be patient as the roots have to develop so that the plant can flourish. In the last year I have witnessed a whole new growth process. I collect seeds from interesting plants that I see along the way. One pod came from a Cassia plant. I would set up a tray with all kinds of seeds: vegetables, herbs, flowers. My results would vary, but after a week or so I would know what worked and what failed. Time after time the pots with the Cassia seeds would be empty. Maybe they just don’t grow from seeds. Then, this summer as I was weeding through my pots (what was alive and what was
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One of my favorite pieces of wisdom is that we get to the place we are supposed to be when we are supposed to get there. Typically, as I offer this advice I am thinking of the story of the People of Israel who wandered for forty years and two generations on their journey from slavery in Egypt to redemption in the Promised Land. I find countless examples and experience throughout life that resonate with this message: in driving errands, courses of study, working on projects. We either want to get to a place faster than we can or slow the world down to delay and postpone as much as possible. Think about how many time-keeping devices we have around us, how much we talk about being better managers of time, how we classify friends and loved ones as early birds or chron-
ically late. As we manage our lives and mark time we decide that we are or should be in the driver’s seat. We are supposed to be in control. As I reflect on the tasks of life and RABBI our management of MICHAEL BIRNHOLZ time an unexpected teacher came to mind. You may know that I love gardening. Part of my interest in gardening focuses on seeing what I can grow from seeds or cuttings. Some of the experiments work while others just shrivel and die. When you spend time sowing, nurturing and watching seeds to see if they germinate, you gain interesting insights into time and control. I am constantly surprised by the time frame of seed growth. There are
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Tasks of life and the management of time