BIRTHDAY

Birthday.

Goodbye eighty. I have very few regrets. Our relationship was always temporal. You gave me a scare when a doctor told me that I had high blood pressure, but a little pill took care of that. Guess my journey into the unknown continues.

But there is at times a sense of confusion. I tried to recall a poem I wrote when I was about twenty-five. I recalled the first four lines, but after that only incoherent bits and pieces. There were three or four stanzas. Then I watched the daily news and felt immediate relief. Even the young people were forgetful, especially when the history of mankind was the subject.

Perhaps the young people never learned what I learned, or perhaps they were taught differently and studied differently. There seems to be a disagreement on the meaning of words. Many words have a new meaning not found in a dictionary. Not only that but if anyone suggests that a new word meaning is incorrect that person is shouted down, ostracized. The level of anger rises. It's always someone else who is at fault—not the person screaming in your face.

On morning walks along the canal trail I see many faces, some old friends. I don't see races. I don't talk with races. I see and talk with people. Many of these people have the same concerns that I have.

Local news about police brutality and street violence is dangerous and embarrassing.  Shooting innocent children is unconscionable. Allowing these conditions to continue is unacceptable.

All the present reasonable and unreasonable social anger makes me forget some things that ought to be too important to forget. Like Covid-19. It's still around. Before the historic statues began to fall, this new virus was the talk of the country. People everywhere expressed opinions about it, medical professionals warned us about it, and the old word pandemic was pulled out of the annals of history to describe it. Sufficient numbers of people have died to make Covid-19 unforgettable—for those who survived it.

I have a birthday coming up. I suppose some gifts will come my way too, perhaps a cake. There is one gift I would prefer not to receive—Covid-19. As for the divisive, angry political talk, I think I can handle it. Too old to argue or fight, I will vote for candidates who initiate positive, proven methods of change and embrace social harmony.—O. T. B., Syracuse, N. Y.