That Was Then… But This, This Is Now

 

   A couple of years past, a half century ago, I had just graduated from college and was preparing for my first teaching job. We were living in the center of West Virginia at the time, the school deep in the heart of the West Virginia coal mining country.

   The closer it got to the beginning of the school year the more anxious I got. I was young. Was I prepared? Did I have what I needed? Was I smart enough? What resources would be available at the school? Now remember…this was well before computers and other technology was available in schools and life in general. No one had ever heard the term ‘social media’.

   We had recently rented a small second floor somewhat furnished apartment and we were attempting to make it feel more like home when there was a knock on the door. The gentleman standing in the doorway introduced himself and said that he was a World Book Encyclopedia salesman and asked if we would be interested in purchasing a new set of encyclopedias. And, if purchased that day, a free bookshelf would be included at no extra charge. (Some sales tactics never change.)

   After hearing what he had to say and thinking that it might help me as a new, beginning teacher, we decided to purchase the set.  And yes, payment was spread out over 12 months. I had not gotten my first paycheck yet and back then that encyclopedia was pretty expensive.

   Half a century later plus those extra five or so years, who would have thought that I would be able to sit in a comfortable reclining chair in my living room and simply say “Siri, tell me who started the War of 1812” or “Siri, in what year was the Brooklyn Bridge built or who was the first man on the moon?”

   Is there still such a thing, a half a century later, called an encyclopedia or are they just a dusty set of books stored in the basement of the local library or in someone’s garage or attic.

   Seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, years. decades. These are all ways we measure the passing of time. And then there are the centuries. Time can pass quickly if we allow it. Or sometimes it can just seem to drag on forever.

   The other day while shopping in the local grocery store a young child asked me how old I was. My response was that on my next birthday in September I would be three quarters of a century old. And the child’s response? “Wow. You are really really old.” And believe me, there are some days when I do feel really really old.

   So, which sounds younger. I will be 75 years old on my next birthday or I will be three quarters of a century old on my birthday? Or should I have answered the question by saying that I don’t use an encyclopedia anymore. Did he even know what an encyclopedia was?

   I have been doing a great deal of thinking about what life was like half a century ago as I prepared to enter the classroom to be a teacher. The good news is that can still remember some of what life was like back then.

   And to be honest, there was nothing wrong with picking up volume C of the encyclopedia and look up the history of Civil War. Back in the day, it was how I taught the kids in my classes to do research. It was one of the ways we learned. That was then.

   But today, life is quite different.  I carry this little device in my pocket. It’s called a smart phone and all I have to do is type in a word or ask the phone a question and it responds with all kinds of answers and ideas. Yes, a telephone with a keyboard. Amazing! Back then the telephone had a dial and was wired to the house. It was difficult to even walk across the room. Three feet was about the limit. But that was then. And this is now.

   It’s difficult sometimes to think about the future and how it may affect our lives. Often people sometimes will call it the ‘fear of the unknown’. But if we often reflect back on the ‘then’ in our lives sometimes it can give us strength to face the now. Remember, we have lived through many unknowns before.

   The next time someone asks you how old you are, it may not be the question of when you were born but a question about the life you have lived to get you to where you are today. For me it’s more than just the 75 years. It is three quarters of a century of a life filled with a whole lot of unknowns that have given me some wonderful memories and experiences. Maybe more important, the past can lead us to the way we accept those new challenges that make us the person we are today, regardless of how old in years we may be.