If you want to be a part of something remarkable, show up Saturday morning at City Park and take part in the transformation of that area that has been nothing short of amazing.

We suspect that even if you have a "brown" thumb there will be something for you to do Saturday as thousands of plants get put into the ground. The result, we know already, is going to be remarkable. Someday you're going to want to be able to tell your children or grandchildren that you took part in this project.

And all you have to do is show up — the planting officially begins at 7 a.m. — though it probably wouldn't hurt to bring your gardening tools with you if you have any. We would hope that there will be several hundred other people in the park who will also be working.

In the past, Marshall has not particularly turned out all that well for events such as this. We remember a few years ago a downtown clean-up that featured almost every inducement possible was done by a little more than 100 people. And that was probably the biggest turnout ever for such an event.

But that was then and this is now. We take the view that Marshall is an evolving community, that things are changing here. Some have been slow to realize this and, indeed, some do not understand it even yet.

But those of us who do know it cannot allow ourselves to be undone by that sort of negativity.

One of the ways to show up the naysayers is, well, to show up — on Saturday, next week during Second Saturday events and, for that matter, at tonight's branding event at the Marshall Civic Center.

But you know what? If the crowd isn't huge Saturday, that doesn't mean that the evolution of Marshall is slowing, or that it is an illusion. Those of us who believe in the city will not let a single failure or letdown derail us from the ultimate goal.

Eventually, if we persevere, it will happen. We would just like for it to happen sooner, rather than later.