By Nancy Patrick

I live in a state of perpetual confusion these days. I used to feel pretty certain about most of the things in my life. I grew up appreciating modern medical advances and faithfully took prescribed medicines, received regular vaccinations, scheduled recommended check-ups, and pretty much accepted what doctors and other educated professionals told me.

I used to think that I did not rank highly among the intellectual people in the world, assuming that those people were smarter, wiser, more intuitive, more discerning, and more judicious than I. Otherwise, how did those people become doctors, professors, statesmen, judges, real estate magnates, religious leaders, and financial wizards? 

My parents’ lower-middle class status and little education prompted them to teach my sister and me to understand our “place” in the world. As I grew older, I surmised that my parents’ attitudes, though well-intentioned, had actually created self-esteem issues for us.

For whatever reason, I was a young adult before I began to recognize my own competence and right to have opinions and choose my own beliefs and activities. I actually held on to some of my insecurities until the political climate in the United States took a dangerous turn in 2016 and continues today. 

Unfortunately, I came to understand that powerful people often use their influence to threaten, intimidate, and bully those less powerful. Life becomes stressful and fearful when people think they can lose their livelihoods and reputations at the whims of people they displease. 

I realize that politicians have often found ways to protect their majority opinions by warping the opposing side’s opinions. This problem is not unique to our current situation, but it is a dangerous way to guide society. 

Sadly, many young families today can’t enjoy the freedom and peace in which I grew up. Some young parents today even blur the faces of their young children if they publish family pictures. They worry about predators who take and abuse children. The kids can’t play in the yard without adult supervision.

As an older member of the baby boomer generation, I have gratefully witnessed the passage of laws that have ameliorated many of the social injustices of my youth (i.e., segregation, education, equal rights, gender equality), but I also rue the fact that the world feels much more unsafe today than it did in my youth.

Life in Abilene in the 1950s and 1960s was so much simpler than today. I lived on the north side of town within walking distance of all my schools. The families in my friendly, safe neighborhood had multiple children with moms taking care of home duties.

The children would freely play outside, ride their bikes, go to nearby Cobb Park, and play in Catclaw Creek which ran the length of our street. With moms at home, the kids often ate at their homes or their neighbors’ homes. No one seemed to worry about kidnappers or child molesters.

At Halloween, we roamed the neighborhood with groups of siblings and friends without parents fearing for our safety. We knew which houses gave the best candies and made sure not to skip those.

My family used a family doctor named Dr. Kenneth Day, somewhat like the fictional Dr. Marcus Welby. We went to him for all medical issues. In those days, people didn’t have health insurance (at least we didn’t), so they paid for each office visit. Dr. Day was such a sweet man. He took care of me from childhood until I married at age eighteen. 

Dr. Day took a personal interest in my family’s life. He always asked about all of us whenever one of us visited his office. Easter Sunday of my sophomore year in Abilene High School, I went to visit my mother in the hospital before going to church. 

Dr. Day came by and spun me around to see me in the beautiful yellow dress my mom had made. He was so impressed to see the young lady I had become. His attention made me feel so special. That occasion illustrates the simplicity and innocence of my world. I miss that atmosphere of genuine care and concern.

I have written about a past world that no longer exists. I know it sounds naïve, and the realization of the demise of that culture saddens me greatly. I grieve that I no longer trust the very institutions that made me feel safe years ago. 

As our country becomes more and more aggressive with other nations, threatens allies who deign to disagree with its policies, and performs acts of war against perceived crimes, I feel uneasy and even frightened about the instability of our constitution as some branches of government attempt to replace constitutional law with biased political interpretations that distort the original writers’ intent.

I feel myself withdrawing from public forums or limiting my input to them for fear of attack from readers. For example, people on Facebook used to pose questions designed for friendly responses (such as “how does this hairstyle look on me?”). Now when people post questions like that, they preface them with “friendly criticism only” or  “please be kind.” 

Sadly, our culture has deteriorated to such an extent that many people use cruelty and condemnation rather than kindness and admiration as a way to empower themselves. Since both political parties claim spiritual and moral bases for their policies, maybe they should follow Biblical principles in I John 3:17—” If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person?” 

Nancy Patrick is a retired teacher who lives in Abilene and enjoys writing