Past And Present … Some Thoughts On Both …

Sorry, but I’m a rather lazy blogger. It’s not that I don’t think about getting a new message out there. It’s on my mind every day. I’m grateful to all of you who visit my site often, probably hoping to see a new message, and I apologize for not “visiting” you more often.

I guess I wouldn’t really call myself lazy, because I am actually a very busy person, probably TOO busy! I think not getting around to blogging is really from being so busy that I have to set priorities. Since we returned from an extended vacation in Las Vegas a month ago, I have been inundated with family business matters that have taken up most of my days – catching up on all kinds of reports – getting things ready for tax time – catching up with my grandsons – proofreading two books (I got the proofs to the Kindle version of EAGLE’S SONG, Book #7 of my Savage Destiny Series, which will soon be available for your Kindles!) and also proofreading my new book, PARADISE VALLEY (July 2013) so it can go into production. And by the way, it’s already up on Amazon for pre-orders, so be sure to get your order in! On top of all that, I’m catching up on treasurer duties for two different organizations, and trying to get busy on a new book I’ve been trying to get started for months.

The days slip by too fast, and before I know it I’m worn out and realize I still haven’t blogged in a while. Sometimes all this social networking can make it difficult to get our daily work done, and even though I am 68 years old, I am far from retired!! I don’t think that will ever happen. I don’t look or feel my age and I sure don’t intend to ACT my age! Nor can I picture myself visiting a senior center every day playing cards and bingo. No thank you! That’s not me! Life goes by too fast and I still have too much to do.

So here I am, finally blogging, and not really saying much. Let’s see – what can I say that is enlightening and interesting? Well, I don’t know about enlightening, but my 12 year old grandson said something yesterday that made me feel good and “enlightened” me as to what’s going through his 12 year old mind. He said that as far as he can see, from talks he has with me and from books and movies and the old TV shows I “make” him watch when he stays at our house (he’s actually come to enjoy them), he thinks the “old days” were much better than today’s times. This from a kid who is immersed in today’s social media, video games, and all the other things thrown at kids today. He said it seems like “back then” people had more respect for each other, were kinder to each other, and dressed nicer.

Right on! I was so happy to hear him say that, because I love when young people see and understand those things. He even asked how and why things have changed so much. I told him I think it’s mainly that the “personal touch” has been removed from so many things. Neighbors don’t need their neighbors any more (or at least they think they don’t until there is a disaster); we don’t know our neighbors and we stand in line at the grocery store completely ignoring those waiting ahead of us and behind us. TV has opened us up to all that’s going on in the world, and sometimes it’s all overwhelmingly depressing and brings out our fears and makes us want to lock our doors and keep the “world” out. Entertainers strut on stage practically naked, sitcoms are about single parents and broken homes, prayer is gone from schools (and teachers can’t even hug a child any more), kids come home to no one there, and drugs are passed around like glasses of water. Fewer and fewer children are introduced to God and church. TV, movies and video games are about murder and mayhem, and nowadays a person of fame and/or power can do something sinful and against the law and then brush it all off with “I’m sorry for what I did.” Sorry? They got caught!! If they were truly sorry, they would have admitted their mistake in the first place before they were found out.

And so it goes. These things take away from personal relationships, take away from closeness with friends and neighbors, lend a hardness to feelings, bring out fears and feelings of self-defense. i.e. – “If I stay away from my neighbors … if I don’t talk to the stranger standing beside me … if I’m careful not to open myself up to anyone, I’ll be safer.”

Sitting in a McDonald’s this morning having breakfast with another of my grandsons, there was a young man in a booth nearby who was a bit scrubby, wore a hooded sweatshirt and was avidly typing away on a computer. My first thought? He could be a serial killer, or maybe some guy planning to kill a bunch of kids and conferring with a cohort via e-mail. Why did I immediately jump to that conclusion? Today’s news and all the terrible things happening caused me to distrust that young man, who was probably just some college kid working on a thesis. Who knows? It’s too bad that today we have to think the worst of those around us “just in case” they are a killer and we need to be “aware” so we can escape quickly if we need to. That’s sad.

I told my 12 year old grandson about when I was little and stayed with my grandma, she at first didn’t even have electricity – used a wood-burning stove to cook and had an ice box. He said that sounded like fun. Well, it WAS fun for a little kid. I didn’t think a thing about it. I loved my grandma and always had fun there. When she finally got electricity we’d sit in front of the radio and “listen” to stories, including the first GUNSMOKE programs before it went to TV. Yesterday I found a channel on my satellite radio (called Radio Classics) that plays those old programs. What memories! I was instantly 8 years old again. Where has all the time gone?

Well, apparently some of the things I’ve told my grandsons have sunk in and they have an appreciation for the “old days.” At the same time, I’m grateful for today’s times mainly because of the medical help we have now that we didn’t have then. Other than that, I’m not so sure I wouldn’t rather go back in time. But then I would not have the gift of social networking that helps me reach the world with news about my books, so I am grateful for that.

So here I am caught up in both past and present. I prefer not to think about the future because I’m not really sure how great it will be for my grandsons – and at my age you tend to just be grateful for each new day and not worry about ten years from now. I hope that all of you out there will do the same, because all we have is today. The past is gone, and there really is no tomorrow because when you get there it’s “today” again. Enjoy life and try to instill some of that old-time respect in your children and grandchildren – respect and love not only for others, but also for themselves. Teach them it’s okay to have feelings, to want to hug someone, and to search for their spiritual side. Teach them that if they don’t like some of the things going on in the world, there are things they can do to help change that … and that human nature makes us basically still yearn for love, still care about others and still be “good neighbors.”

I hope you wave to your neighbor tomorrow and maybe smile and say hello to the stranger standing in line with you at the grocery store. And I promise to try to blog more often after this!