In just one hour this morning, I read or heard a series of news stories that made me wonder if the world is spinning out of control and if there is anything you or I or anyone else can do about it. Or, do we simply have to wait for some new political savior to get things right? Amid my moment of helplessness and exasperation, I know we must not wait.

The incredibly nasty midterm elections have finally passed. Now what? I believe you don’t need to lie down and accept the current state of affairs, but that there are five practical steps you can take to engender more hope in our lives, communities and society.

On Saturday, I didn’t move an inch from my couch from the morning until midnight as I watched in horror the unfolding scenes from Pittsburgh. As a practicing Jew, I feel a bottomless sorrow; as a devoted American, I feel emboldened. As a person who cares deeply about the health of our nation, I feel we must act.

I feel utter disbelief, rage and profound sadness as I watch the negotiations unfold between Dr. Christine Blasey Ford and the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee. I am ashamed of many of our political leaders and sick to my stomach. We can disagree about who should sit on the U.S. Supreme Court—but a basic test of human dignity now stares us in the face. We must not fail.

Yesterday, a gunman walked into the Capital Gazette newsroom in Annapolis, killing five people and injuring two more. On the heels of the shooting, Capital Gazette reporter Chase Cook tweeted yesterday, “I can tell you this, we’re putting out a damn paper tomorrow.”

On Monday night, the pregame show before the first Stanley Cup playoff game between the home-team Vegas Golden Knights and the Washington Capitals began with lots of smoke and mirrors. Unfortunately, what happens in Vegas doesn’t stay in Vegas.