My wife, Lynnda and I were in EPCOT at Walt Disney World Florida on Jan. 1, 2002, after the 9-11-2001 bombing of the World Trade Center.

Their evening closing light show and fireworks was called Illuminations Reflections of Earth.

It was a great show and had incredible music to go along with it.

This evening they added the song “Let There be Peace on Earth and Let it Begin with Me.”

Thousands of people were there from all over the world around EPCOT’s 7 Seas Lagoon. Suddenly we all were singing that song together. It was a magical moment.

No matter where we were from, we all had the same dream.

We were unified.

We can’t control what happens in the Middle East or even in the USA when peaceful protests turn into violent, destructive mobs.

If you turn on the news tomorrow morning I can almost guarantee there will be at least one shooting to report.

Some are close to home, like the recent shooting of four family members in Elkview, where I live.

We can feel helpless, frustrated and angry.

When I walked home from grade school, getting shot wasn’t something that even occurred to me.

I feel sorry for kids in places like Chicago where that is a daily reality.

Sadly no one seems to worry about those kids lives except their families. Where is the NBA or NFL?

We only have control of one person, ourselves. We control our thoughts and actions. We control how we treat others. We control what we choose to read and post on the internet.

I’m surprised what normally friendly people post and say to others on the internet when they aren’t face to face.

You can feel the anger and the hatred.

When we see one of those feeding frenzies of hatred we have a choice to make. We can become part of it and participate in the anger and hatred or we can leave.

Just reading that garbage never helps our attitude or emotional well-being.

I have never seen any solutions or positive resolutions come out of those feeding frenzies of anger and hatred.

I normally don’t spend much time on Facebook or Twitter. Lynnda usually points out any discussions she sees where I have expertise, like energy, and can add something positive to the conversation or correct misinformation.

Rather than jump into the argument I prefer to ask an innocent and pointed question that causes everyone to stop and think.

Maybe even get a little embarrassed by their anger and rudeness.

Many times, a simple question can stop a hateful discussion. The point is, we can choose to be part of the problem or part of the solution.

When we are driving and get cut off we can get angry, blow our horn and tell the other driver they are number one.

Now we are mad and so are they.

Who will be the next innocent person to feel the wrath? Maybe our spouse or kids when we come home angry.

Instead, we can choose to smile it off and realize we were calm, professional and avoided an accident.

We can’t control what others do.

We have 100% control over our response.

We can choose not to get angry. We can choose to be peacemakers.

We can choose to focus on what we have in common and what unites us instead of on our differences.

One of the best ways to reduce violence and bring about peace is through prosperity.

Bringing jobs back to the USA so people have hope and a higher standard of living can bring peace in many ways. Perri is a talk show host in Chicago and serves the black community.

When I was on her show she asked me how they could bring industry back to Chicago into their many vacant buildings.

Perri said, “If we can get industry to come back to Chicago, we can give our young people hope and end the gun violence in our city.”

Americans of all over the country want to see good jobs and products made in the USA again no matter their politics.

At Shale Crescent USA we have the data to show manufacturing in the USA is more profitable than in Asia and more profitable in this region than other parts of the country.

This message is getting out to the world.

Creating high wage jobs in our region gives people hope and helps keep them off drugs. Prosperity can reduce our drug problem, violence and crime. Prosperity produces peace because people have something of value to lose.

Manufacturing here where most of the markets are reduces emissions from shipping products half way around the world. A major U.S. automaker has a goal to be carbon neutral by 2050.

Shortening their supply chain by manufacturing and purchasing more of their parts in the USA will do more for the planet faster than fuel switching to renewables.

Prosperity and a cleaner more peaceful world is one of the things our region offers.

Peace on earth starts with each of us.

We control our choices and our attitude.

We can sow love or propagate hate.

Our smile and a kind word can change someone’s day and be passed on changing others’ day.

We can be peacemakers. We can change our part of the world for the better.

Twenty years ago, a young man changed my world and many others when he said, “Coach, we want to play for the State Title.”

Those young men showed me how to dream again.

My ability to dream became contagious.

Twelve years later the ability to dream got my wife walking after a serious car accident.

We can all spread peace by setting an example and influencing others.

You don’t know how far your influence will reach.

In 2021 let peace begin with us.

All things are possible.

Thoughts to ponder.

Greg Kozera, gkozera@shalecrescentusa.com is the director of marketing and sales for Shale Crescent USA. He is a professional engineer with a master’s in environmental engineering who has over 40 years’ experience in the energy industry. He is the author of four books and numerous published articles.