Cedar Valley News – October 25, 2025

Evan Swensen
October 25, 2025

Quiet Questions: What If We’re Looking in the Wrong Direction?
By: Teresa Nikas
From the fictional town of Cedar Valley, where characters from Quiet Echo continue to respond to real-world events.

It started with the sound of shouting through my phone screen. I wasn’t even watching the story—just scrolling past it on the newsfeed while stirring soup on the stove. A thousand voices, fists raised, flags waving under gray skies. Then, in the corner of the screen, a man barely in focus—holding a cardboard sign that said, Talk to Me.

No one did.

I froze the frame. The crowd surged around him, all motion and noise. He stood still, his coat zipped to his chin, his eyes steady on faces that never looked back. Something about him pulled at me. Maybe it was the loneliness that comes when you’re the only one trying to listen.

That image stayed with me all week.

Tuesday morning, I stopped by Lars Olson’s hardware store. He was helping Mrs. Henderson pick out paint for her porch railing. She asked about colors; he asked about her grandkids. It wasn’t a long conversation—maybe two minutes—but it was kind. She left smiling, a small can of white paint in her hand. It struck me how rare that feels now: being seen without needing to shout first.

Later that night, I walked home past the old schoolhouse where the Afghan families are living. The windows glowed softly, children’s laughter rising through the cold air. Across the street, a man walking his dog stopped and listened for a moment before continuing on. He didn’t say anything—but his shoulders relaxed, just a little.

Maybe peace doesn’t come from who shouts loudest. Maybe it starts in moments so quiet we nearly miss them.

When I think about that man with the sign, I wonder if he went home discouraged or hopeful. I hope he knows someone saw him. Because his stillness felt like a prayer—the kind you whisper when the world’s gone deaf.

We keep looking for answers in headlines and slogans, but the truth might be right beside us: in a wave across the street, in a paint-mixing counter conversation, in the sound of children laughing under a borrowed roof.

So tonight, before I lock the newsroom door, I’ll leave you with this question—not to debate, but to live with: sWhen the noise fades, what do we hear first—our own echo, or someone else’s heart?

This editorial is part of the fictional Cedar Valley News series. While the people and town are fictional, the national events they reflect on are real.

It’s free, live, and fresh! Quiet Echo—A Cedar Valley News Podcast is live on Apple Podcasts: https://bit.ly/4nV8XsE, Spotify: https://bit.ly/4hdNHfX, YouTube: https://bit.ly/48Zfu1g , and Podcastle: https://bit.ly/4pYRstE. Every day, you can hear Cedar Valley’s editorials read aloud by the voices you’ve come to know—warm, steady, and rooted in the values we share. Step into the rhythm of our town, one short reflection at a time. Wherever you listen, you’ll feel right at home. Presented by the Readers and Writers Book Club: https://bit.ly/3KLTyg4