October 20, 2020
As a child I don’t remember fearing very many things. My most common nightmare was of having my brother sucked down a bathroom drain as I struggled to hang on to him. The dream would end without resolution. Years later my husband and I were needed to help him out of a crisis.
In Thursday morning Bible study we have been examining Dr. Seuss stories for scripturally inspired parallels. The last one was the “Butter Battle Book” about two groups of characters—one which buttered bread on top and one underneath. Because of their differences, they hated one another. They built a wall and then built gadgets to hurl and shoot at each other. Eventually they invented a doomsday weapon and the book ended without resolution, like our world’s MADD nuclear deterrent.
The ending brought to my mind 1963 and the Bay of Pigs incident. I was 14 and I remember the fear I felt from my father as he gathered food and placed it in our cellar in Reno, Nevada. At that time Stead Air Force Base was located just outside of Reno which caused some fears that we could be targeted. We had drills in school where we dived under desks for protection in case of a nuclear attack which made most of us fear that we would never grow up. I think this added to the recklessness of the ‘60’s.
Today our fears revolve around the COVID-19 virus. We debate how to protect ourselves and our loved ones and still enjoy their company. How can we do this safely while our grandchildren are returning to school, playing with neighborhood children? We still want to be with them.
My husband and I enjoy going to breakfast at First Watch. The tables are spread apart and everyone wears masks going in, but as we eat and drink they are removed. The waiters and waitresses wear masks and they have always kept the restaurant very clean so we feel safe. We pick up our lunch from Charlotte’s Rib when we have time and we feel comfortable doing this.
Holidays are coming. What do we do about Halloween? My daughter says it is recommended that we assemble treats in individual treat bags and assemble them so they can be picked out individually so I have obtained treat bags and candies which I will assemble in a box lid in rows so they can be easily picked up as children come to the house. How many will come, I do not know.
What about Thanksgiving? As with birthdays, we will gather wearing masks except when we eat together and we hope and pray that none of us are carrying COVID-19 around. My daughter’s grandmother-in-law is 91.
Christmas is going to be much the same. We pray for vaccines and good-sense guidance from a new administration and we fear that a new administration will not come.
We fear the outcome of a close election with resulting violence in the streets. We fear that hungry, destitute people will lose hope and become violent.
Politicians prey on our fears. I remember President Johnson’s ad which featured a lovely little girl eating an ice cream cone while a nuclear blast goes off behind her. After that ad, his opponent did not stand a chance. Today we fear a close election and this may be the first time that very few voters will refuse to vote. Perhaps this is a good fear.
Dear God, help us handle our fears and only worry about controlling what we can and leave the rest to you.
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