Red's Wrap
Happiness. It's relative.
Life on the Far Side of 70 in a Time of Peril
Everything bothers me.
My hair, my tax dollars paying government officials acting like teenagers on a group chat, my nail polish having gelled, random cuts in health funding to states, interrupted shipments to food banks, the cat’s hideous litter box, fear of looking at my bank account to see if my Social Security check was deposited, worry about Meals on Wheels and a raft of other things for old people evaporating, doubt about whether I am doing enough or doing the right thing as a ‘community leader’ which is how I was described today by the County Executive, being with too many people better dressed and way younger at the County Executive’s big speech, my favorite southside diner being sold, not hearing what someone sitting ten inches away from me is saying, feeling on the verge of tears all day worrying about the country, things like that.
You know, things like that.
I worry old people’s lives will be cut short by our grief about the country. Yes, I honestly think about that. Stress is bad for old people, everybody says so. Reduce your stress, get plenty of sleep, and drink a lot of water, that’s what the aging experts say. They leave out how to handle the dismantling of American institutions, the so-far unimpeded creation of an imperial presidency, and the nearly effortless scrapping of norms and values we thought were etched somewhere in stone.
Where’s the stone?
A few days ago, a very old friend casually asked me, “Do you think there will be a civil war?” “Yes,” I answered. And then we walked into a luncheon with dozens of other old people where we talked about other things. What other things?
Shake it off, I tell myself. You’re just having a bad day. Go make a new sign. Wash your protest shirt. Stop being a baby and show up.
Okay.
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Snow Door | wisconsinacademy.org
Listen to Jan read her essay “Billy” presented on WUWM’s Lake Effect
Jan’s essay “At the Breakfast Bar” on WUWM Lake Effect
Jan’s essay “The Parish Hall,” on WUWM Lake Effect
“Fury Cannot Touch Me,” Modern Love, NYT, 9/29/11
I feel for you. Here in the UK we’re not experiencing the same violent dismantling of the status quo as yourselves but a more insidious process which is seriously damaging us, and it hurts. Thanks for the encouragement to just get on with it from a fellow 70 plus. ❤️