Imagine you were born in 1900. When you're 14 World War I begins and ends at 18 years old with 22 million dead. Shortly after, a global pandemic Flu called 'Spanish' ", kills 50 million people. You come out alive and free You are 20 years old. Then, at 29, you survive the global economic crisis that started with the collapse of the New York Stock Exchange, causing Inflation, Unemployment, and Hunger. At 33, the nazis come to power. You turn 39 when World War II starts and ends at 45 During the Holocaust (Holocaust), 6 million Jews die. There will be over 60 million deaths in total. When you're 52, the Korean War begins. At age 64, the Vietnam War begins and ends at age 75 A boy born in 1985 thinks his grandparents have no idea how difficult life is, but they have survived several wars and disasters. A boy born in 1995 and now 25 years old thinks it's the end of the world when his Amazon package takes over three days to arrive or when he doesn't get more than 15 likes for her photo posted on Facebook or Instagram. .... In 2020, many of us live comfortably, have access to different sources of home entertainment, and often have more than we need. But people complain about everything. However, they have electricity, phone, food, hot water, and a roof over their heads. None of this existed before. But mankind survived far more disastrous circumstances and never lost the joy of living. Maybe it's time to be less self-escaped, stop complaining, and stop crying.
my best, Paul
Well said Paul! Couldn't agree with you more
Just kiddin' brother. I agree whole heartedly.
One of my grandfathers was born in 1900 and the other in 1903.
I was so very blessed to have gotten to know them well as I was growing up. One of them made it into his 90’s. My other grandfather made it to 107. My son got to spend time with him and played his fiddle for grandpa on his 104th birthday..
I would sit and listen to their stories of their youth for hours. Loved every precious drop of wisdom they were willing to share from their stories of good times and bad. Both were strong men with strong convictions. I am so glad I was blessed with getting to know them!
They owned their own businesses and persevered through drought, flood, anthrax, rustlers, wars, peace, pandemics, the Great Depression, good and bad politics...
We have nothing to complain about.
People don't know what they don't know. Lack of perspective makes folks think history only begin yesterday. Sometimes the issue is they not only don't know.... they can't learn either, or refuse to. History often repeats itself, mostly due to human nature and how we are wired. It's been swimmin' up stream since the dawn of time. Now and then the current gets ya.... but ya gotta keep swimmin'....
People wallowing in problems and issues which they don't even have the context or self awareness to realize they have the luxury of such considerations. First World problems become issues when you live in worlds where all the rest of them are taken care of.
Folks need to take the time every day to count their blessings and take measure. Breath, calmly and with awareness. While you can still fill your lungs.
Take time to be thankful..... because no matter how bad you think things are right now..... always remember..... it could get worse.... =D
Thanks again Paul. Great perspective.
I do worry about this country going forward.
Every time I hear that song I think of him and people like him. Grit was a given. Fortitude was personality. And complaining or quitting meant you starved off, got killed, or simply died. Makes me sad to know that generation is mostly gone. I miss my pop for sure.
My hunting buddy and I were just talking about this and my comment was a quote of what Charlie said "glad I'm as old as I am".
Or you could have been born in just about any other time and been killed in hand-to-hand combat.
These times are no doubt strange and present their own challenges, but put in context I'd rather wear a mask than a helmet.
He was 13 years old.
Hardship to kids’ today is not having WiFi. We’re all guilty of creating this coddled generation. Actually, it started with the boomers. I honestly think my grandpa wouldn’t want it any other way.
They have been spoiled by technology , “helicopter parents and thinking somebody owes them something!”
My paternal grandparents helped raise me... My grandfather was born in 1901 and my grandmother 1903 and both lived to be 86 living on this Earth within a few days amount of each other... They'd seen it all...
Every time I see vintage photos or videos of Fred Bear makes me smile... He was born 1902 and dressed exactly like my grandfather, Fedora hat and all... They were both skinny dudes and even looked a lot alike...8^)
My great grandfather loved to hunt and fish and passed that passion to my grandfather. I was lucky enough to get to use my great grandfather’s fishing gear growing up.
My grandfather told many stories about how life was for his father and how much had changed in such a short time.
From horse and buggy taking two days to get to town to putting a man on the moon, amazing changes in one lifetime.
And yet. I am self aware. As an old guy told me once, “It’s hard to maintain perspective in the moments after you stub your toe good and hard.” or have a wrench slip and peel your knuckles.
Seems like I’ve stubbed my toe a lot this year.
I am currently missing a fantastic day of hunting to take care of repairing my trailer. I think a meth-head clipped my trailer at a gas stop. The passenger side fender fell off and ripped up the electric. No lights.
No whining or crying. It’s something that will get fixed. You just gotta deal with whatever comes up.
I have perspective. I’m very happy that my problems are small, small but numerous this year, but I’d be lying if I said that I haven’t been swearing a bit... like I stubbed a toe hard.
Be safe. Have fun. Short bloodtrails.
ElkNut
A funny caveat to this virus is the older people who have been thru the wringer of life already are the ones getting the short end of the stick with this virus. The youngsters by and large get a pass
Her siblings were born in a sod hut; she moved to town at 14 to be the nanny, cook, laundress and seamstress for a family of 8 so she could go to high school in town, and went on to become a nurse.
Her husband was in WWI and got called up by the Army in WWII when they needed docs, even though he was in his 40s by then.
My dad gave up pursuit of making Eagle Scout and took over as Scoutmaster when those guys got called up. In the summer, during the war, he worked the fields with his grandfather behind a team of horses. They had a tractor by then, but no gas, so horsepower it was.
When my Grandpa died at 56, GM went back to work as a nurse.
Whenever I think the going is tough because I’m lacking some convenience, I just ask myself....
WWGMD?
It kinda knocks the Quit right out of a guy knowing that his 85-pound Grandma would have cause to roll her eyes....
I don’t know about you but I was in high school in the early 80s, and the Spanish flu hardly got a mansion. ‘Course I’m just a kid; there was a whole lot more US history to cover by the time I got to it than there was when you guys were that age!!!
It’s like when I was taking biochemistry and working with the textbook that was about 2 inches across the spine. A friend of mine‘s father said “Oh, yeah… We covered biochemistry when I was in medical school. I think we spent a week on it.“
But if an epidemiologist says that this is worse than 100 years ago, I would like to know what numbers they are looking at, specifically, when they say that.
But I do like the quip that the greatest generation was asked to go to war, and we are being asked to sit on our couches.
Not quite.... Both my parents were the "greatest generation". Mom was basically a "Rosy the Riveter" assembling the fuselages of F4U Corsairs and B26 Marauders. Dad, well he was a gunner in an M18 Hellcat tank destroyer.
And while he was called to blow shit up, and mom helped build the war effort, those at home, while asked to sacrifice, could go out to eat, get their haircut, meet with family for holidays, go to work, engage in group activities, local businesses weren't destroyed by a Governor and his health secretary with capricious and arbitrary closings. In other words, in spite of ALL that was going on, they were allowed to live life.
Please don't use my parents generation as a punch line. I know without a doubt my dad would say "I didn't fight my way across France, Hurtgen Forest, the Ardennes, and the Rhineland to willingly bow down and piss it all away." My mom, she was quiet and would do whatever the hell she wanted. Just like she always did.