Eight Years Ago....
I was 43 years old. Today, I'm over 50, feeling it, most days. I keep getting junk mail from AARP (which I don't even open). What used to be a daily list of aches and pains that annoyed me have become a regular part of my life. I have officially now lived over half my life with aching knees.
Eight Years Ago....
My oldest daughter was in 5th grade, the twins were in first grade. Today my oldest is a senior in high school. She is making college plans. She drives herself around these days. (When did that little pickup truck that I drove for 20 years stop being my truck?). The twins are in middle school and just two years short of being in high school themselves.
Eight Years Ago....
I hadn't looked at a volleyball game, or a ball for over 5 years. I had limped away from the game when my knees wouldn't let me play anymore. Today, I have been coaching middle school volleyball for 7 seasons. I am the director and a coach at my own volleyball club. This sport has taken over my life in ways that it never could have when I was a player. Eight years ago I didn't even miss the sport. Now, a week without spending time on the court with my players is a bad week.
Eight Years Ago....
I was feeling pretty good about my family's future. My wife and I were doing the right things - living within our means and saving for college and retirement. Today, I'm not so optimistic. Where I used to make plans for retirement, now the only plan I have is to hope I can keep working until I die. Because I don't beleive that our current government will ever allow our economy to recover to the point that the average guys like me will ever be able to retire and maintain any sort of comfortable lifestyle.
Eight Years Ago....
Our president was comic fodder. People made jokes about him. Called him names. Drew comical cartoons depicting him as a monkey. The media loved to ridicule the way he talked. After the 911 attackes the nation ralley around him for a few months. But then rapidly reverted to their old ways. But then some in this nation who didn't think we should fight back against the terrorist who attacked us carried things even further. They started blaming him for the attacks. Then they started blaming him for everything bad that ever happened in the world. Today, our president is an empty suited, smooth teleprompter reading chicago thug who got elected solely on the basis of his skin color. This president and his admiring throng of state controlled news media do not tolerate jokes, ridicule or derision of any kind. If you do not toe the line, smile and agree with every thing he says you are immediatley labeled a racist, a hater, or a domestic terrorist.
Eight Years Ago....
Our national debt was $5,773,172,068,291.89 that rounds off to about 5.8 trillion dollars. Today our national debt is $11,784,424,784,049.61 or 11.8 trillion dollars. (you can get those numbers here.)
Eight Years Ago....
Shortly after the 911 attacks our nation finally woke up and went to war against global terrorism. Today our leaders won't even say the word terrorism, unless it is used to describe staunch conservatives, former military, or anyone else who does not agree with them politically.
Eight Years Ago....
Our military has spent the last 8 years battling against terrorism and the despotic regimes in the world that support terrorism. The line you often here is 'Our military went to war, or nation went to the mall.' Unfortunately this has become too true.
It has been a long 8 years. Many of us swore to never forget the events of 911. I don't believe I ever will. The memories of the anger and frustration I felt on that morning mixed with the concern for the future of my children I don't think will ever fade. My grandparents used to tell me about how they heard about the bombing of Pearl Harbor and how that day changed their entire lives. I feel that way about 911.
Eight years ago...
I didn't care that much about politics. I didn't follow world events that closely. I voted and occasionally read the paper. But I knew I was a little fish is a huge fish bowl. So I concentrated on just taking care of my little corner of the bowl. I didn't really believe that my life and livelyhood could be that effected by world events. I was wrong. I still concentrate on my little corner of the fish bowl. But now I watch and pay attention to the rest of the bowl also. 911 and the eight years since then have taught me one thing. I may be just one guy. I may not be able to do much to affect the big old crazy world out there. But if I turn my back on that world and don't keep an eye on it. It can, and probably will, squash me like a bug.
