The year 2012 has been a mixed bag. We have no doubt that as many people who are looking for 2013 to begin would love to savor 2012 a bit longer.

One thing for sure we know is that we survived the world ending on us once again.

The Rockdale News will be starting its fifth year of operation in 2013. We have been fortunate to have a great staff who feels that The News is a living, breathing burst of energy that tries its best to be all things to the good people of Rockdale County.

In those five years, we have seen a group of people here in Rockdale County who believe that they live in the best place in Georgia. As a result, they have poured their heart and souls into ensuring that we have good law enforcement, a great school system and a volunteer system of caring people who respect their neighbors and are proud to be in our community.

This past year, that ideal has been shaken a bit and the tensions caused by local elections still have not calmed down.

We have faith that those tensions will diminish soon, and that our friends and neighbors will put their shoulders into the work that is needed to ensure that Rockdale County stays on the path of growth and good living.

Elections come and go, good people leave office sometimes and new people step in to fill the void — new people who are full of energy and hope.

We certainly can be disappointed because of elections, especially if our candidate loses, but we can’t keep dragging our disappointed chins along in the mud. We need to hold our heads up, support our elected officials and, by the time next election rolls around, if we don’t like how our elected officials are doing, get out of your chair and go do something about it.

We have one of the finest communities in the state here in Rockdale and it can only get better if you want it to.

Let’s as a community move forward in 2013 and show the rest of the state that Conyers and Rockdale are not the embodiment of its elected officials. Rather it’s the people who live here and who care that make this community what it is. The year 2013 can be a good one, so with pride, courage and respect, let’s see that it happens.