72. These Troubled Times
A much younger cousin is battling colon cancer, my sister is going through a very messy divorce, her three teenagers are having difficulties coping, Kevin, my eldest son is freezing in New York, and hasn't been able to find a job since September of 2001. On top of all this, our nation is declaring all out war with major international, nuclear, ramifications.
Each and everyone can come up with his/her own list of worries and woe. If it isn't a personal health concern, it's an economic, social, or family concern. The list is endless. With the daily rhetoric of war talk and the constant threat of terrorism, "bio" or otherwise, our stress levels are at an all time high. In fact, can anyone remember a time when the living was easy? I doubt it.
Life did seem simpler at one time, before technology took over and the information highway was still a dirt road. Of course, technology per se, has been causing shifting change since the 1800s, before ANY of us were born. Who of us would want to go back to a way of living before the automobile, electricity, or indoor plumbing was invented? Come to think of it, one can visit North Korea, where there ISN'T any electricity; or spend time in any other third world country and truly experience a way of life without modern conveniences.
Recently a major epiphany occurred to me. Change is constant. Progress demands change. While it is human nature to prefer comfort and security of what is familiar, it is obvious that those who are open minded and willing to go with the times, most likely fare better than those who don't. The fact of the matter is that we have no choice when it comes to the laws of nature and universal principles, short of choosing to bury one's head in the ground.
I hear many people constantly complaining or lamenting the days gone by. WAKE UP PEOPLE! You're wasting your time and energy trying to hang on to whatever was and most likely will never be again. Leaving one's doors and windows unlocked, dining without someone's cell phone ringing at the table next to you, getting full free service at the gasoline pumps, not worrying where your kids are every minute, not having to read food labels or buy bottled water, etc. are all part of days past. Nope, terms such as "road rage," "weapons of mass destruction," "bio-terrorism," and "reality programming" are all part of our everyday language now.
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