How about we try a little kindness and patience? What has happened to our town that was once so peaceful and quiet?
In 2002, my wife and I purchased our home in Lewes. For the next five years, we had a routine that every Friday after school my daughter, then 6 years old, and I would head here to paradise and my wife would meet us after she finished work. We would go back either late Sunday or very early Monday to the hustle and bustle of the Washington, D.C. area.
In 2007, we decided to pack up from the craziness and move here full time – truly one of the best decisions we ever made. My daughter attended Beacon Middle School, Cape Henlopen High School, graduated from the University of Delaware with two degrees, and earned a law degree from the American University Washington College of Law. One reason we like it here so much is the once-small-town atmosphere, and all the mom-and-pop shops owned by our friends who own businesses where they live. To say we love it here is truly an understatement. But those of us who have lived here for decades, not to mention those who were born and raised here, have seen such sad changes in our once-quiet and polite community where the sound of a car horn was an anomaly.
I lived the first 20 years of my life in Brooklyn, N.Y., and more than three decades in the Washington, D.C. area. I always dreamed of living in a small town, so moving here was truly my dream come true.
Fast forward to present times. What the heck has happened? So many people with little patience and in a hurry. Recently, I was traveling on Savannah Road, waiting to make a left turn to go to Lloyd’s Market. The right lane was lined with parents waiting to pick their children up at Lewes Elementary. Then I heard it – that now-so-familiar sound of someone blasting their car horn as I was waiting for traffic to pass so I could safely complete my turn. Then a day soon after, as I was waiting in the left turn lane for the light to change, I began to lift my foot from the brake when yet again another horn blasted from the guy right behind me. As we proceeded to Old Landing Road, a landscaping truck with a flatbed trailer was waiting to make a left turn when the horn blower decided to pass us all on the shoulder.
In addition to people laying on their horns these days, there also are the issues of high speeds, cutting in and out of traffic, and using the right-turn lanes as express lanes. Delaware State Police do a great job, but they cannot be everywhere all the time.
My point in writing this letter is in hope that we all take a breath and think about why we moved from urban areas to Slower Lower Delaware. I know why I did: It was for the peace and quiet of a small town and friendly people. Please be kind.
-
A letter to the editor expresses a reader's opinion and, as such, is not reflective of the editorial opinions of this newspaper.
To submit a letter to the editor for publishing, send an email to viewpoints@capegazette.com. All letters are considered at the discretion of the newsroom and published as space allows. Due to the large volume of submissions, we cannot acknowledge receipt of each submission. Letters must include a phone number and address for verification. Keep letters to 400 words or fewer. We reserve the right to edit for content or length. Letters should be responsive to issues addressed in the Cape Gazette rather than content from other publications or media. Letters should focus on local issues, not national topics or personalities. Only one letter per author will be published every 30 days regarding a particular topic. Authors may submit a second letter within that time period if it pertains to a different issue. Letters may not be critical of personalities or specific businesses. Criticism of public figures is permissible. Endorsement letters for political candidates are no longer accepted. Letters must be the author’s original work, and may not be generated by artificial intelligence tools. Templates, form letters and letters containing language similar to other submissions will not be published.
