I'm Getting Old

Things sure have changed. Sadly, my kids will know a far different world than I. It's strange to think that growing up, it was the norm to spend hours ad infinitum outdoors, biking, skating, playing in the local creek. There was no end to our adventures...at least it seemed that way. We knew we had to be home for lunch or dinner. But for the most part, we frittered away our days in bliss (especially in the summer). It didn't matter that I got poison oak regularly from the creek at the school. And I only remember a limited number of times when we put on sunblock. We didn't wear bike helmets and often, a single seat belt would serve two (or three) passengers. Our car windows rolled all the way down, and if we wanted to talk on the phone, we had to be BY the phone. We didn't have recycling bins-- though we recycled the newspapers when a man driving a truck would yell directives in his megaphone, "Papers on the curb!" My sister and I had a paper route and we cared that we didn't get any "complaints." Fast food was rare and special and certainly didn't offer any of the healthy fare that it does now. We drank water from the tap and even at the advent of bottled water, we questioned the point and pitied the poor saps marketing their newfangled product. We went to the store to rent a VHS and made sure to rewind it when we were finished so as not to incur a charge. We bought newspapers from a machine and made phone calls from a booth-- both for a quarter. Parking was free. Grocery carts got put back in their place. Kids waited in the car for a quick run-in. If you wanted coffee, you would make it yourself (or buy it from a machine). Computers had green screens and could hardly do more than word-process. Printer paper had perforated edges that had to be torn off after printing. Tapes were cooler than records. The organized activities at birthday parties were pinatas and "Pin the Tail on the Donkey." Decorations were balloons and streamers. Cakes looked like cakes and presents were wrapped- not bagged. Our bounce came not from jump-houses but the miniature exercise trampolines that our parents owned. We played with our friends without ever making a "date." Amateur film footage was limited to truly memorable experiences and pictures were not taken casually because film was expensive. I saw my best neighborhood friend get spanked and didn't call CPS. We didn't have air conditioning, a dishwasher, ice-dispenser or garbage disposal. It was considered rude to say "I'm bored." And the most sketchy TV show was "Family Ties."

You get the point! I lived a modern Norman-Rockwell existence. I am not a curmudgeon, bemoaning the emergence of all things new. I like technology and I appreciate the modern-day gadgets. Yes, it takes away the fun of going to the store to rent a movie, or twirling the phone line while chattering away about this or that. But those things come with the passage of time-- and fun can always happen...new traditions can replace bygone ones, and old times become lore for the next generation.

What really makes me sad, more than all of the state-of-the-art conveniences is the continuing degradation of our society. My kids won't play in the front yard or roller skate to the local store unless accompanied by an adult. They won't drop their bikes on the lawn in trust that they'll be there when they return, racing in excitedly to tell me about the tadpoles they saw at the creek. They won't be allowed to cruise the channels on the TV or be on the computer without internet blocks. They won't be gone for more than three hours without the ability to contact them via cell phone. Sadly, general trust has been eroded. Public safety has become a crap-shoot. More than simply rebuffing public-school evolution indoctrination, there is so much more to battle: rampant and encouraged homosexuality, bisexuality and transgender dogma; the despicable white man and the stigma of "intolerance"; and a in-your-face hatred of all things Christian. Their eyes will be assaulted by so much filth and the battle for their minds will not be without many casualties. People are not getting worse, but the worst is becoming more acceptable.

When I think about these things, my initial heart response is fear. How can I protect my children? How can I maintain their "innocence"? What can I do to preserve their "purity"? The answer is clear. And that answer has been the same before these times and will be the same forever. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding" (Proverbs 3:5). Circumstances have changed and they will continue to change for the worse. But whether my child is raised in a God-hating society or the Victorian age, his heart is God's business. My prayer only grows stronger with age, "Come quickly, Lord Jesus!"