For many of our forefathers, America was a dream. It was a land of opportunity where one could reach their goals and objectives. Where kings and queens and petty dictators had no say in the final outcome of your work. A place you could control your own destiny. These men and woman brought this attitude to America and it became woven into the patchwork of our society, and became the American spirit ... what some people call American Individualism!

This attitude has grown and we've had many more people add their experiences to this great experiment called America. We've survived a Civil War, a World War with a pandemic to follow, another World War that threatened to destroy the very foundation of our society. We've had a civil rights struggle that almost tore the country apart at the same time we had another war that brought people to the streets in protest. But in every case, as in our current pandemic, the American Spirit has survived!

We have survived because of freedoms our founding documents have guaranteed us. The freedom to worship in any manner we choose. The ability to speak out for or against the government and the policies they espouse. The freedom that allows us to create and adopt to whatever situation life may hand us. It is this freedom to change and adapt that will get us through!

You see it in our businesses and their willingness to try whatever is necessary to make ends meet. In the restaurants that now have gone to drive-up and call in orders to keep employees and keep our community fed. You see it in auto repair places that are picking up vehicles assessing the damage and driving them back. You see it in the nurses and health care workers that risk their lives for our community. You see it in the grocery clerks and bank tellers who are providing essential services. You see it in so many businesses like mine that are locked down with devoted employees working on client's files with unfortunately the inability to see the client in person. You see it in communities that are rallying around their small businesses and helping each other survive.

Is that the American Spirit? You bet it is and it's on display for the world to see. Are there people taking advantage of the situation whether it be hoarding or flat out stealing? Sure there is, that element will always be part of any society. But the American Spirit is here, I see it constantly and it will survive. We will not only survive this pandemic and whatever happens in the future but we will excel because that is who we are!

Marty Pay has been an Insurance Agent in Tehachapi for over 30 years. He is also a Professor at University of Phoenix and the Chairman of the Sage Ranch Advisory Board.