SEVEN DECADES:
I see life from both sides now
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It is easy to be nostalgic about "the good old days." It was no better then than now. We were concerned about World War III and nuclear Armageddon. We wrote letters. Each began with who was and had been sick. All children caught measles; mumps and chicken pox. Polio and tuberculosis were endemic. We all had small pox vaccination scars and were immune to that pandemic. Injuries happened frequently. Automobile accidents were much more often fatal then than now. The most common dental care was teeth pulled. Me, and all but one sister, were born at home. We had an indoor toilet and running water but there was
no television; central heating in the winter or air
conditioning. Hot water flowed a little while after a fire
was lit in the basement hot water heater. |
We've got it Let's keep it that way
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Born
on a farm in 1941 I started paying attention to life on the
other side of the fence about 1950. World War II was
recently won but the Russians were acting up, Jim was in the
Airforce, we had our own family bomb shelter so I started
paying attention.