Winter Garden Magazine August 2016 | Page 25

a pizza which looks like a Poké Ball, an item from the game. Not only is this bringing more foot-traffic and sales to local businesses, it is also bringing a lot of joy to the community, which, just weeks ago, was reeling from tragic loss and mourning lives lost during the Pulse nightclub shooting. Pokémon doesn’t discriminate, it doesn’t disparage, and most importantly, it doesn’t harm. This phenomenon seems a peaceful way of “sticking it” to the recent evils of the world. We’re out here in the streets catching Pokémon and we’re not afraid. We can all be friends no matter our race, sexuality, or religion. We’ve finally found something we can all agree on… and that is that we “gotta catch ‘em all.” After the events which occurred in the past few months, our community could have easily become scared and locked ourselves indoors, away from the world. But our community proves to be strong and resilient. We came together to mourn and memorialize those we lost, and now we are coming out to have a little fun with our neighbors and together enjoy Pokémon Go. AUGUST 2016  |  WINTER GARDEN MAGAZINE   |  25