America Drifting or Drowning?....My Flashback to the Past..

With Veterans Day being celebrated this week I paused to reflect on America. I was born in 77 and grew up in the eighties. The America I knew is not the America today. I grew up to the familiar whistle of Andy Griffith playing on the TV and in a neighborhood of otherwise strangers that had a true sense of community. People in my neighborhood got to know each other. They looked out for each other's kids and property. It wasn't a garage door up, garage door down silo scenario like today where neighbors can live aside each other for years and not even know each other's names. We often left our house doors unlocked, our cars unlocked, our garages open for hours at a time, and if Mom ran out of sugar or eggs the neighbor was happy to spot you some until you restocked your supply.

In our schools, we rose to salute the flag each morning and we took great pride in our country and state. Respect for teachers was the norm and those who got out of line were not tolerated or coddled, they were punished appropriately to bring them back in line. It was routine to see parents actually back up the school administration when their kid's behavior was unacceptable and together they made sure the kid respected the rules and abided by them. We didn't get endless chances to retake quizzes & exams to make the teacher or ourselves appear more proficient. We were allowed to fail and expected to learn from failure so we could develop confidence in ourselves, grit, and persistence. There was a strong emphasis on accountability and excuses brought shame not praise. Teachers, Principals, and Coaches would pray at school events. When a player was seriously hurt on the field it wasn't a moment for politically correct nonsense for a "moment of silence" it was expected that we take a moment and pray for the player's well-being and end the prayer "in Jesus's name."

Then the Boy Scouts was a revered organization only comprised of boys and there was honor in becoming a well-rounded young man just as the Girl Scouts played a tremendous role in bringing respect and honor to young women. If a boy tried to play a girl's sport he would have never been allowed to and if he was caught in the girl's locker room he would be expelled not accommodated. Sure there were always the troublemakers, rule breakers, and people bent on any manner of evil but they were such a minority of the population. Disrespect to the elderly, lawlessness, corruption, lying, stealing, and crime were frowned upon, ridiculed, punished, and resulted in varying degrees of consequences. When we were kids they believed in mental illness and tried to help those individuals instead of exacerbating the unfortunate individual's condition by treating them as normal and dismissing any harmful conduct their untreated condition rendered upon society as just an expression of unique individualism.

We were taught the value of hard work and saving for a rainy day. We used coins often for purchases and got a kick out of finding a random penny on the ground. Now coins of different denominates line a jar next to the convenience store register because they have lost utility or value. People respected others' time much more back then. An appointment was something to be early for and never late. We actually shook hands to make deals in lieu of today's multiple pages of fine print because a man's word isn't what it used to be. Sports practices were often not held on Wednesday nights because it was a known church night for the youth and never held on Sunday because families considered that day holy. Families were mostly together then. Divorce started to increase but wasn't the norm. In fact, it wasn't uncommon to see cars all decorated with the shoe polish sign in the window saying "Just Married." Marriage was esteemed not dismissed and families actually routinely ate dinner together at a table in their home each night.

It wasn't perfect but the America of my youth is a far cry from the America today. In many ways, we could argue we have improved efficiencies but in many ways, we have declined ethically, morally, and as a country of free men and women. Is America drifting or drowning in a deep darkness of our own making? You decide. The safe harbor America seeks is found in the keystone of this great land's founding & constitution. The keystone is the Almighty. Only He is able to deliver a person, a neighborhood, a city, a state, and a nation from themselves. America has had a motto from its founding that eventually was engraved on those pennies I would find as a young boy.. "In God We Trust." May it be so, please God may it be so....

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3:5-6