A Blog of Flashbacks

Outer Threats to Inner Peace

April 2025

You do not have to be an American to feel your life or your way of life is threatened. You only need to be a citizen of the world to feel these threats. I hear these concerns from my friends and relatives in the US and Canada, and from friends in Europe and Asia.

Where is my next meal coming from? When will it come? Will there be another bombing? Another murder or rape on the streets? Another assault on the law of the land, wherever the land? Am I safe? Is my family safe?

I grew up in the bucolic settings of New England, Nova Scotia, and England. This was my privilege. Yes, I sat in my father’s lap as the family listened to the news of World War II. We did not live in England but a cozy New England town. Still, I dreamed there were, what I called, at the age of three or four, GermanNazisoldiers under my bed. I could scurry on my little legs down the long hall to my parents’ bedroom to crawl between them for safety.

I heard no bombs. I saw no houses burn. I did not fear for my life or world. Young as I was, I feared for the lives of other four-year-olds, their parents, sisters, and brothers, for the soldiers and the families who lost them. I never imagined losing my house or parts of my family.

This feeling remains inside of me to this day. I have no reason to fear for my family yet. I have reason to fear for the lives and health of some of my friends in the US and other countries. I have seen firsthand what war does to individuals. I wrote a book about it, The Soul of My Soldier. I have seen what tragedy does to a family and the others involved. I wrote a book about that too, The Night Orion Fell, a tragedy that affected the rescued and some of the rescuers.

My work, since I was a teenager with my first full-time job has been with those many people whose lives are far less fortunate than mine—learning disabilities to behavior problems to post-traumatic stress. I’m not sure why but caring for others is the role I’ve taken in life.

This is a short post because I ache for the people of the world. To focus on it, makes me feel depressed. What I also view is the long history of humanity. Adapting from Richard Wolff’s excellent over three-hour interview, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cgQfWAuyTtk, what I heard was a man who understood the history of the world. He saw our journey from agrarian to feudalism to absolute monarchy to democracy, socialism, and communism. We residents of this planet have evolved. We will continue to evolve, and democracy will not be our future.

When I look at life this way, I feel better. Why? I recognize I am a mere drop of a person on this planet. We all are mere drops in time, even our leaders. I feel that as a privilege to exist. I am privileged to live in a forest, far from the troubles of humanity be it a war or city living. I am surrounded by art—both what hangs on the walls of my house and the outdoors around me. Outdoors offers me blades of moss to view, a forest of trees, ocean waters that lead into the Pacific, the aurora borealis. If I look at where I live, I can feel the joy of my meager existence. That sustains me day to day.

My grandson, who jumped off the boat to walk the beach and take photos.

The front yard of my home.