Opinion: Saratoga’s story is one of steadiness, vigilance

This is my last column as mayor and I ll be honest I ve gone back and forth on what to say I could give you a highlight reel of projects and policies I could pick a hot political topic and offer my two cents Instead I want to return to something I announced the night I was sworn in Cities are the stories we tell ourselves about a place So the question I ve been asking myself is What story did we tell about Saratoga this year Related Articles Elias Newsom s presidential star rising after state s Prop win Elias California governor hopefuls Porter Hilton making big blunders Opinion Keeping streams ready for winter storms takes ongoing maintenance Elias Naming rights could ease California bullet train s financial woes Elias California s new housing law unlikely to help the several who need it It wasn t a neat or simple story A few chapters were joyful Kids walking through newly striped crosswalks on the way to school Neighbors stretching together at Yoga in the Park Contributors turning Saratoga Nights into a real thing instead of just an idea in someone s notebook The first episodes of the Saratoga History Podcast with longtime residents sharing what this place meant to them long before Zillow and smartphones Other chapters were harder Hearing that two-thirds of West Valley College students are housing- or food-insecure and wondering how a neighborhood as fortunate as ours can do more Meeting older neighbors aging in place on fixed incomes in the same homes where they raised their kids now mostly alone Feeling the strain when the cost of living the pace of change and the noise of national politics all seem to press in at once If there s one word for how I feel at the end of this year it s gratitude Gratitude for the chance to serve the city I grew up in Gratitude for our city staff who show up every day to do what I consider glamorous work permits potholes tree issues urgency planning the thousand tiny things that keep Saratoga quietly working Gratitude for you for the emails the population comments the ideas and yes even the criticism when you felt we missed the mark People often ask How does it feel to be mayor My answer has unfailingly been the same it s never been about being mayor it s about what I do as mayor The title is temporary What lasts is whether we made this place a little kinder a little safer a little more accessible for the people who live here now and the ones who will come after us Did we get everything right Definitely not Several decisions will only reveal their true impact years from now That s the humbling part of local cabinet you plant trees you may never sit under You approve a traffic change currently that various future second-grader will benefit from without knowing your name You say yes or no to housing that will shape who can live here or years down the line The work is slow and that s okay Is the state of our city strong I d answer with specific humility Saratoga is steady and vigilant Our budget is balanced We re investing in the right places We re in better shape than various of our neighbors And we face the same headwinds every California city faces rising costs aging infrastructure and state rules that change in the middle of the match There s work ahead There constantly will be I ve announced this before and I ll say it again If I had one wish for how people describe Saratoga in the years to come it would be with a single word kind Kind to one another Kind to visitors Kind to ourselves I say this as a reminder to myself first I know I can be kinder in every part of my life If Saratoga becomes known as a city that chooses kindness even just a bit more often than average I would count that as a civic mastery Kindness is not abstract It shows up in everyday gestures slowing down at a crosswalk checking on an older neighbor saying hello instead of looking down at our phones So where do you come in If you ve ever thought Someone should do something about I gently suggest that you might be that someone Join a commission Volunteer with the senior center or SASCC Help at your child s school Advocacy West Valley College students Check on the neighbor whose lights stay off a little too long Show up to a meeting not just to oppose something but to imagine something better This may be my last column as mayor but it s not the end of Saratoga s story A new mayor will step in Councils will change Challenges will evolve What will endure is what each of you chooses to do with your time your skills and your care for this place Thank you for trusting me with this role for a year Thank you for the grace when I stumbled and the push when I needed it And thank you preponderance of all for being part of Saratoga s story Belal Aftab is the mayor of Saratoga