America . . . Where are you?

I guess it is normal for people to think back on their childhood and remember all the cool stuff they did that they can't do today.  This is a phenomenon that has been happening throughout the history of mankind, I suppose.  I have been thinking about this for some time now and feel it is time to let it out so I can move on and think about some fresh stuff.  In reality, I don't really believe I can, but I have to put forth the effort to share and see if you can relate to some of it.  It is always reassuring to know there are like minded folks still hanging around.

My Father was in the Navy when I was born in 1947.  I was born in an ambulance somewhere in Oakland California on the way to the Navy Hospital.  I don't remember that part, but that's what Mom told me, and since I figured she was there, she should know.  Seeing pictures of my young life is a feeling of "family" love and security.  Having two parents raising us was never an issue of oddity.  Today it seems to be unusual.  Before World War began, my Dad was beginning to study to be a Chemical Engineer at the University of Minnesota.  When the War broke out, he enlisted in the Navy.  He became a Navy Quartermaster which is the profession of Navigation on Navy ships.  They plot the routes by maps and "shooting" shooting the stars to pinpoint where they are, and where they want to be.  (that is the short course of Naval navigation)  When World War II was over, Dad decided to bring his now family of a wife and two children back to Minnesota, and went to a trade school called Dunwoody in the Minneapolis area.  With Grandpa's help, he started a printing business and worked it until he passed away.  During that time we lived in several places that I remember. The first was in a canvas roofed travel trailer (no inside bathroom) parked in Grandma and Grandpa Saffell's back yard.  I went to grade school about three blocks away.  Walked there and back by myself (I think).  Learned how to cross the streets, respect the people's yards that I walked by.  Found out that I needed glasses at that young age, and still wear them today....not the same ones of course.  I think it was about third grade that we moved out of the trailer and into a new house in the suburbs of Saint Paul.  I  have written about Circle Pines in previous issues.  What a wonderful time that was.

Movies with values

That was where my view of the world was expanding.  With a house came responsibilities, when I was old enough to receive them.  My Dad had bought a cargo van (like a bare bones, close sided, no side or rear windows, no seats but small crates, just the front seat for Dad and Mom truck) for his printing business. Suzanne and I got to sit on these crates to ride all the way into Minneapolis, and around the area, and had GREAT Fun!  No seat belts, no windows except the front one to see, but we had fun! I remember there was one time where I rode on Dad's lap and was able to "drive" the truck.  Going around corners was a blast!  Of course leaning in the direction of the turn didn't really turn the steering wheel, but it was fun just the same.  It was common in this time period to ride in the back window of cars that had that ledge back there.  I never got the opportunity to do that but it looked fun.

A time with simple
 and safe child entrainment

As time went on I got the yearly responsibility to mow the lawn and pull the weeds out of the gravel driveway in the summer and shovel the snow in the winter.  It wasn't one of my fondest memories, but it was part of my training for adulthood.  RESPONSIBILITY  With two years between Suzanne and me, there was a seven year gap and we got a new brother, Guy, then two years after that we were all blessed with the final part of our family Gregg. All that time we were able to live in a world of exploration.  There was a lake (mud hole) called "Golden Lake", hence the mud coloring of the water.  It was across Hwy 8 and Suzanne and I rode our bikes across the hi way and back into the woods to the lake.  What fun we had even though we couldn't EVER see the bottom, it was very sandy.  Lots of kids were alway there.  Our elementary school was about two miles away in New Brighton.  The school bus would pick us up and drive us there.  I remember a few times, missing that bus and ran to school through the woods/swamp and still got to school on time.  During school everyone learned to behave or suffer the results of bad behavior.  What was worse if you were to succumb to the wrath of the Superintendent, was the report to your parents when you got home.  That kept us on the straight and narrow path of citizenship.

Times of American ingenuity

Gas stations at the time actually had men (and some ladies) that were dressed in starched, creased pants that came to your car as you pulled up to the pumps and after a pleasant greeting, filled your tank, washed your windshield and checked your oil and tire pressure.  What service.  You then paid him and he gave you trading stamps for the whatever you saw in the little catalog that you wanted to save up for.

Growing up always included Church on Sunday.  Even though Dad worked 12 to 18 hours a day, he made sure that, in the least, the church bus would pick us kids up and take us to church for Sunday School and Worship.  But most times, Mom and Dad were with us.  We went to a small country church in the woods close by.  I have preached at a couple churches similar to that one, and it was a comforting feeling.  I remember when our church grew so much that a piece of land out by the highway (8) was purchased and constructed.  It was wonderful!  Even had a basement!  It was built with concrete block and my job was to smooth the cement between the block with a small piece of broken block.  I had some bloody fingers and knuckles, but it was rewarding work, building God's house.  Then came the time to seal the concrete walls of the basement.  They had one or two basement windows open, but I was in the men's room painting on the sealer.  Dad and the Pastor were in the ladies room next to me, and I remember weirdly crawling past them on the floor, around to the stairway and out to the back porch to get fresh air.  Thats what we did "back then".

Black and white TV with wholesome programs

We moved back into town (South Minneapolis) when I got to 8th grade, and had an old house one block from Dad's print shop.  Folwell Jr. High school was about eight or nine blocks from our house.  Walked there and back every day.  There was a girl that lived a block behind us that walked to school also and she passed right by our house.  I got the timing down and walked her to and from school, and we chatted and had a great time on our daily visits.  One day after I got home a piece of paper appeared on my dresser.  I opened it up and there was a message:  When walking with a lady, the man always walks on the curb side.  Mom had seen what was going on, and decided I needed a little education on good manners.  From then on, I always walked on the curb side, when walking with a girl.  In Minnesota, particularly with all the rain and snow and slush, it is the courteous thing for a man to do.

When we moved back to "the city", we renewed our friendships at the family church of our our grandparents, Minnehaha United Methodist Church.  Of course when we moved back, it wasn't a "United" Methodist church yet because that happened in 1968, but thats another story, for another day.  What fun and growth I had going to the Methodist Youth Fellowship (MYF) group on Sunday nights.  The Jr High and Sr. High met for a wonderful meal and program before splitting up in our Jr./Sr. levels.  The church had a full, commercial quality kitchen and the parents were quite active in providing hot meals like spaghetti, meat loaf, etc. for our Sunday late afternoon meals.  The parents were very active with our children and youth groups.  There were college age folks that were our "councilors" as well.  One of them was in Medical School and sold me his Goya classical guitar in 1964 and I still have it!  It was my first decent guitar...and my second guitar.  My first guitar was an arch top, Sears and Roebuck catalog bought guitar, that I started learning how to play.  I practiced on it, so focused on learning to play, that my fingers actually bled, and I worked through the pain.  THAT's how much I wanted to learn the instrument.  After all that, one would think I would have been a professional guitarist, but that never happened.  I still don't know how to read music!  Again, that a story for another time.

The days of beginning enterprise

All this time with going to church, living the post war American dream, growing up in a family based on Christian values and American all inclusive Northern tier values, life was good.  Not wealthy with the no cares type of living, but with the understanding that you did the best you can with what you have and are able to work for type life style.  You depended on your self and at some times, your family, to do what needs to be done.  No complaints, not even any thoughts that I can remember of anyway,  no whining, no sniveling.  Family's stuck together and fought with each other at times, but when the rubber met the road, ALWAYS gathered around when outside forces threatened.  Whatever the other persons faith was or wasn't, wasn't a concern of ours to change them. For example, if they were Lutheran, we didn't try to convert them to Methodism!  If they were Roman Catholic, that was GREAT!  Good for them!  Just as if they were any other religion, it was non of our business how they worshipped!  Today it seems to be a different mind set with other cultures that have come into this Great United States of America.  The place where we welcome others no matter if they are faith based or not.  It is America's tradition to accept ALL who wish to share in what we have in these Great United States of America.  This country was build on a thing called "WORK ETHIC".

What has happened to the United States of America that once was?  Where acceptance of life style, faith, weirdness, was given.  What we are experiencing today is so alarming and discouraging is not only that, but FRIGHTENING!   When we are actually being invaded on our southern borders and no one in our Federal Government leadership is doing anything about it!  When we have government entities like the US Patent department making crazy noises about how a Sports team is named and threatening dastardly harm, is overreaching at an accelerated pace.  When we have the VA system falling apart because of management and high level lack of leadership imploding a system that is supposed to be helping our injured veterans coming home from trying to solve world crises, that is NOT the America value system at all!  What happened when simple political discourse was able to resolve differences and now have those who think they have POWER to damage their opponent political parties.  What happened to America when big business is allowed to buy their way to make even more money at the expense of allowing the free enterprise system to work as it should and provide jobs for those that have trained and put in the effort to better themselves and their families?  What has happened to America when religion of others is NOT acceptable to some and they whine and cry and pitch a fit instead of doing the American traditional format of FREEDOM OF RELIGION, not Freedom FROM religion?  What has happened to our America that tolerates such abuse of its citizens who have chosen to follow their faith in non offensive or invasive manners such as going to church on Sunday, Saturday or any other time that their faith instructs?  How could we have come so far with so much good work done by so many, to what seems to be happening, to have our country derailed and destroyed but the intolerant, abusive, nasty, corrupted, and selfish people who have chosen to come to the United States because we DO offer a safe environment for a mixture of beliefs....but to with the purpose of actually living TOGETHER in peace and harmony.  NOT to be threatened and abused because we do not fit THEIR cultural beliefs.

I remember our past sixty decades and have been proud to have been a part of this great, wonderful   and magnificent country that was founded on FREEDOM.  With that freedom comes responsibility.  There is the key.  RESPONSIBILITY.  If you are able, YOU have the responsibility to get educated enough to do what it is you chose to do to provide for yourself and your family (If you choose to have a family)  YOU have the responsibility to pay your own way in our society.  YOU have the responsibility to pay your taxed that provide your community with the resources to provide police and fire protection, streets, sewage removal, etc.  YOU have the responsibly to share, IF YOU CHOOSE, your resources, whether financial or personal, in protecting the United States through the military or other community organizations.  When YOU depend on the Welfare system and because YOU just choose to "because it is there", quite honestly, YOU are a leach, a blood sucker, to society and YOU should be cut off of the public welfare system.  IF you are physically or mentally disabled, THAT is what we as a civilized body do to take care of those that can't...by paying for necessary medications, food, and even housing.  But NOT for cable, satellite, smart phones, vanity drugs, fancy $200 tennis shoes, cars, etc.  What ever happened to America when it was embarrassing to be on welfare?  It should never be embarrassing to be on welfare if you really are unable to be employed.  There are a lot of folks out there that ARE physically and/or mentally disabled and we NEED to be taking care of them.  WHY?  Because that is what AMERICA is, was, and hopefully always WILL be.

Whatever happened to America when life was fun.  When hard work was rewarded without condemnation from those who are envious, and or not willing to do what it takes to make an honest living in this GREAT country.  Whatever happened to America when we were on the cutting edge of inventions?  Records.  Remember them?  The mode of listening to music for years before tapes and now CD's.  What about all the modern conveniences that were invented by American ingenuity?  It is the UNITED STATES of AMERICA that was right there leading the world in imagination and ingenuity.  If a person worked hard, chances are they would succeed.  My Grandfather grew up with Polio.  He fought that horrible affliction and ended up as a Senior Auditor in the Federal Reserve Bank where he retired from.  He raised a family with four children that had wonderful work ethics, that they passed on to their children, and we are passing on to ours and ours are passing on to theirs. My other Grandfather's past was from Bohemia.  A culture of despair and danger.  Immigrating to the United States, his family dug in and Grandpa eventually retired as a mechanical engineer, having designed the heating systems of the Minneapolis School district buildings.  THAT is the America we had.  Whatever happened to America where we can do that again?  Is it too late?  I don't think so.  I hope that my children and grand children can look back on what this time in America was and be able to say:  We were almost gone as a country, but our Grandparents and their grandparents helped save the United States from total disaster by holding on to the FAITH in GOD and the values they learned from our forefathers to keep the UNITED STATES of AMERICA a free country and a world leader in personal freedoms to live, love and worship as a free society that the founders of this GREAT Country had intended.

Help me help save the United States.  Promote self worth, hard work and refrain from abusing the welfare system that was designed to help those who CAN'T help themselves.

AMERICA, where are YOU?

Peace, Happiness and Good Health

Remember, keep singing, keep smiling and keep laughing,

Blessings
Gary