Monday is Presidents Day, and it should be a chance to reflect, to honor and to give thanks. It should be an opportunity to remember that while our president changes every four or eight years, our democracy continues to set a standard that is the envy of the rest of the world. The office itself always has served as testament to the peaceful transfer of power, even when that concept has been met with extraordinary challenges, and to the symbol of leadership that resides at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. in Washington, D.C.

The holiday is the combination of days that originally had been set aside to honor Presidents George Washington and Abraham Lincoln, but has become much more — it’s a chance to remember each of the individuals who has held the office, and the sacrifices they and their families have been willing to make to ensure our country’s institutions continue to function in an orderly manner, even when those institutions have confronted tests that few could hardly ever have imagined.

That’s something that we all too easily take for granted, especially in an age when constant criticism has become the norm.

Certainly, one of the most important freedoms we enjoy as Americans is the right to disagree with and question our politicians. Many of us are more than willing to freely exercise that right. Just ask our current president, Donald Trump, or the men who held the office before him — including Joe Biden, Barack Obama, George W. Bush and Bill Clinton.

And, while we acknowledge that your perceptions of whoever sits in the White House at any given time are certainly determined by where you fall on the political spectrum, we ask that you take a moment to reflect on the presidency itself.

Consider Jimmy Carter, who held the office for just one term — 1977 to 1981. His presidency is considered by many to be one of the most ineffective of the 20th century. Yet he used the power behind that office and his faith in God to do extraordinary things for people around the world, building countless homes for Habitat for Humanity and continuing to help others until just before his death on Dec. 29, 2024.

Remember, also, the work Clinton and the man he defeated and denied a second term to — the late George H.W. Bush — did together to help others around the world. Their’s became an unlikely friendship — two men who held vastly different political views, yet who were able to come together to use their status as members of the ex-President’s Club to help with relief efforts after a tsunami devastated parts of Indonesia, Sri Lanka and Thailand.

Their friendship outlasted that effort and helped to show that once-bitter rivals can acknowledge their differences, move past them and work together to continue to make a difference — and come to enjoy the company of each other.

Of all of the problems the country faces, one of the biggest is the increasing polarization and a growing lack of tolerance of others and their opinions.

We’ve watched as those who seek or hold elected offices no longer see politics as the art of compromise, but, instead, view it as a zero-sum, all-or-nothing battle royale fought only in black and white, with no appreciation of the gray.

It’s gotten so bad that we can no longer enjoy halftime at the Super Bowl as a shared experience.

The race for the White House will be in full swing right about two years from now, and we already know the campaigns of whoever wins their party’s nomination for president will offer much more partisan rhetoric than talk about issues.

And, despite all of that, we know that on Jan. 20, 2029, we will be able to witness a new president be sworn in and appreciate the power of the presidency and the opportunity it offers to affect not only the United States but the world.

It will be another reminder that the office and what it stands for always has been bigger than any person who has ever held it, and stronger than any person or group who has ever attacked it.

That’s the lesson we hope everyone learns Monday.