Maybe it’s because we’ve had it so good for so long we feel entitled to life as we know it. For ours is a life of convenience, cars and cell phones; ours is the expectation our government will look after us, protect us and make sure our taps are filled with hot and cold running water. I say it’s time we think again, especially during this month of remembrance.
With so many and so much catering to our every desire, it seems to me we have forgotten how to look after ourselves. Worse, we have forgotten we are the ones who should be looking after each other, too. Society just keeps marching on, like a parade of lost souls, in our quest to have it all.
Because, despite what we’ve been hearing, life isn’t just about me, or you. It is about all of us, together, co-existing with other people and all else that breathes, flows or is simply present on this planet. When we eat the flesh of a salmon, we know that particular fish once relied on clean water in which to be raised and spawn offspring. But when we use our laptops do we think of the mines that displace villages and animal habitat in order to access minerals for computer components? Do we care enough to give someone who has fallen down on the street a helping hand? Just recently I heard about a well-dressed elderly woman who had fallen down on a street in Calgary. What did people do? They walked around her and stepped over her. No one offered a helping hand until, after some time had passed, another elderly person came along willing to assist.
Whatever happened to our famed western hospitality? I remember a time when people would almost create an accident from so many rushing to help a person in need. Long gone are those days, as we seem to have replaced common sense with fear. Fear of what I’m not exactly sure, but this fearful way of life is creating problems. It prevents us from helping each other. It stops us from looking into another person’s eyes to get a glimpse of what they are going through. Fear is what lets us turn away when we don’t want to deal with the truth.
But, the truth of it is, our veterans know full well what we should be afraid of. They have seen the enemy with their own eyes, having endured or witnessed ghastly conditions when deployed, whether for battle or peacekeeping missions. If there is anyone who can tell you what to be afraid of, it’s a veteran. And I don’t think any veteran would tell you to be afraid of the truth or of helping someone. Instead, I think they’d tell you to be afraid of a society that lacks heart and courage.
If we were to truly honour our military’s fallen and survivors, I believe we would live differently. We wouldn’t want jobs at any cost, we wouldn’t want food that hadn’t been treated with respect, we wouldn’t want to play games where the winner takes all and the losers fight over scraps.
Instead, we would understand that we’re all in this together. We would stand next to each other as comrades, we would embrace all living and non-living things as part of our responsibility, and we would honour our connection to each other and the world. Yes, Virginia, an enlightened scenario like this means we really could have peace on Earth. And Santa Claus if you wanted, too.
I know my grandfather, who fought at Vimy Ridge during WWI, gave up a lot for the life we enjoy today. But, would he give a nod of approval for the way we live? I doubt it. Knowing him, he would ask why we don’t take time to discuss important national and world issues instead of wasting our time with texting and TV. He definitely wouldn’t like the fact we still have the “working poor,” thanks to too many poor-paying and part-time jobs. My grandfather, like so many others in our forces, fought for our freedom. I doubt any veteran would appreciate our frittering it away.
Letting go of our fearful ways and remembering that we’re all in this together — now that’s in our best interest.
For more in your best interest, follow Sheelagh on Twitter @sheesays.
