Years ago, as I watched (and sometimes
helped/hindered) my Grandmother's quilting endeavors, I guess I
learned a few things in spite of myself.
I must have gone through some sort of
subliminal learning process that has come to consciousness as I study
sustainable communities. It seems to me that communities, towns,
cities, counties, regions can be developed in one of two primary
ways. They can be built up as clusters of grapes or like a quilt.
Looking at the common cluster of grapes
(I checked white, red, and purple, leaving no stone unturned), I came
to the conclusion that while close together, the grapes maintain a
high degree of individuality. Furthermore, there is a great deal of
randomness with clusters of grapes. One major stem supports them all, which on the surface, seems to be a good thing. What happens
when one grape goes bad? It rapidly spreads to the entire cluster and
POOF, instant compost. Or, you can try plucking off the bad grape(s)
leaving holes in the cluster that leave you with something less than
what you had. Or, alternately, you can try super gluing replacement
grapes into the cluster to maintain the cluster's integrity. (Trust
me, this does not work in the long haul.) Each individual grape has
one singular purpose in life, to make more of its own kind. (None of
the grapes I interviewed reported having a desire to end up in a wine
bottle on someone's table. Also, none of them anticipated a future
for him/her/its -self that included a glass jar with a label of jam or
jelly attached to it.)
Now, quilts are an entirely different
entity. Quilts require human interaction to exist. Designers and
builders of quilts have my highest respect. Each quilt, even if
following the same pattern as a thousand others, is going to be
unique. There will always be some subtle changes in stitch,
materials, colors, etc. that will make each quilt special. Each
square of a quilt is also unique for the same reasons. The quilter
begins with a design and a goal in mind. Then, a determination of the
materials desired and what materials are available must be made. Each
of these contributing pieces of material must be evaluated for color,
texture, response to environmental changes. (Yes, I am considering
detergent, bleach, washers, dryers, pets, and children as potential
sources of environmental changes.) If various materials used respond
differently to these external stimuli, this can have a disastrous
impact on the overall project. (Beginning to see the relationship
between quilts and communities?)
The overall quilt pattern provides a
central theme. However, the individual squares can be highly diverse,
yet arranged in a manner that adheres to that central theme. Taken
individually, each square represents a unique single entity. When all
is carefully arranged (and sometimes rearranged multiple times) the
central theme unfolds. The variety of colors, textures, and shapes
that can be found in the individual squares begin to come together
into something that is far more comprehensive and functional when it
is incorporated into the whole.
Communities, subdivisions, complexes,
and any other small organized structural groups of a jurisdiction,
function in much the same manner as those individual squares. When
those pieces come together to form a town, city, county, region,
state, or nation, that is where the quilt unfolds.
In order to establish a quilt that is
functional, durable, attractive, and cohesive makes the responsible
planning of each small component is essential. This is where the
local planning department, elected and appointed officials, codes,
comprehensive plans, and other designers of the quilt MUST put forth
the effort to evaluate the components of each small section and how
it affects the whole.
Since it is the citizens of the group
who are the ones who will have to live with and use the 'quilt' that
is provided by this process, citizens need to be educated
consumers of the product. This is exactly why citizens need to be
involved in all processes involved in planning the 'quilt squares'
and the 'overall design'. Talk to elected/appointed officials if you
want something different in the design. Talk to every one of them.
Meet with your friends, families, and neighbors to discuss what your
particular part of the quilt looks like and the changes you might
like to see. Take the time to read the Comprehensive Plan for your
area since it is supposed to be the overall 'quilt' design. Think of
ways to make better use of the 'materials' available and share them
with others. In short, make sure that the way the quilt is being made will meet your needs.
The greatest resource ANY community
(regardless of size) has is the citizens of that area whom the
government is mandated to serve.
If the Town of Christiansburg does not
wish to make use of citizens on committees, then citizens should form
their own committees and have a spokesperson bring their
requests/recommendations to the Council. It would probably be easier
on local government if citizens did it themselves than to have
Council members required to attend more meetings......or not!