When my family visited La Salette this past Christmastime, I picked up an impressively bound daily reader of St. Augustine writings, compiled by John Rotelle and published by Catholic Book Publishing Corp.  The 4th of July one is, I’d suggest, inspired for our times.  From Sermon 30:

Bad times! Troublesome times! This is what people are saying. Let our lives be good and the times will be good. For we make our own times. Such as we are, such are the times.

What can we do? Maybe we cannot convert masses of people to a good life. But let the few who do hear live well. Let the few who live well endure the many who live badly.