Another day 'n time.....

I wuz six years old, Christmas 1942.  I can’t tell you what I got for Christmas that year, probably a toy gun, a book, some clothing.  The world was at war ’n things were rationed, hard to come by.  Sugar wuz in short supply ’n expensive so candy was rare.  Well, lots of things were rare back then. But, there wuz a Christmas tree.  Almost every home had one.  But there weren't many strung with lights.  Matter of fact, not many of them had lightsat all.  Heck, not every home wuz electrified in those halycon days.  Hard to believe but people would put candles in their trees ’n light them. Can you imagine, open flames ’n dried evergreen. Had to keep an eagle eye or watch the house go up in smoke…And because it wuz wartime, outside lights were prohibited.  Air raid wardens made sure that blinds ’n curtains were drawn so that no light showed to tell enemy bombers where to drop their explosives.  Not that there wuz much chance of any enemy bombers finding their way to the middle of the country but everyone wuz patriotic ’n nobody wanted to take any chances.

It’s a different world today in so many ways, one of which is that people are encouraged to enter into competitions to see how many lights can go on a home.  I’m told some of the decorated homes can be seen from space.

I don’t think people are any happier today but probably not really any unhappier. Most likely, six of one 'n half dozen of the other. Every age has its own problems, its own fears.  People like to remark that the forties or the fifties or whatever age their childhood happened to be, wuz somehow a more innocent time, slower, less stressful.  It ain’t true, y’know.  People been making their own stress since the dawn of time. We are supposed to be unique, I'm told, as every snowflake is supposed to be a little different, but what we are, what we really are, what makes us human is our similarities.  We’re all pretty much alike, the same fears ’n frustrations, the same dreams.  And it don’t much matter what your pigmentation might be, or your gender, or your religious beliefs or lack of them. To quote the long forgot Mr. Kipling, the Colonel's lady ’n Rosie O’Grady are sisters under the skin…..

Christmas of 1942 wuz seventy years ago, a diffent time ’n place.  Seems like the more things change, the more they saty the same.

Merry Christmas to all…..