On Aug 22,2021 Charlotte Mary Helen Lewis came into this world in Croyden, UK. I couldn't be prouder. It starts a new phase of life as grandparents for us. I have been hoping and looking forward to this. Sophie and Oliver are going to be good parents and Anthony and I hope to be good grandparents. I feel so blessed also that I got to travel to UK and spend some time with the new family. She is such a beautiful and good baby.
I am nearing the end of my work career. I look forward to retirement on some level but I also can't help but look back and marvel at the journey. It's been a long and winding road. I've taken some detours and breaks along the way. I have always sought to challenge myself though and I find myself in the ER now. It can be a tough job. I have to deal with complex patients and tough social situations. I keep trying to be a better listener. It's never ending learning and change. Mostly I like my job, but it can be hectic and stressful. I want to help people and sometimes it's just sewing up a cut. Sometimes it's listening or breaking bad news to them. Often I can relieve their physical pain. Sometimes I'm just a witness to their tragedy. I have lots of stories from my time in this strange place and I know I will miss it when I retire.
I've been thinking about how important schedule is for your work life. I've sometimes made job decisions based on it and I know other people have too. I left a secure 9-5 M-F position to embrace a variable, holiday and weekend responsibility. This isn't what people usually chose. I always felt that I was in jail working 9-5 though. I glory in being off during the week when other people are working. I like to be able to choose my time off rather than be confined to weekends. I do love my time off. We like to garden, camp and travel. Work is important but so is living a good life.
I haven't given too much thought to racism in my life. As a white person I haven't had to. I did grow up in Memphis in the 70's and experienced a certain tension around race. I remember the failed experiment with bussing. I remember wondering if my parents were racist. They were older and my Mama was from Mississippi and she never stopped using the word nigger. I remember wondering why there were no integrated neighborhoods. My parents tried to instill fear of a group of blacks in me. The worst thing that could happen to you is having your car break down and then you could be assaulted, raped and murdered usually by blacks. I didn't totally buy into everything my parents believed. I did have a black friend Charlene, my senior year of high school that I dearly admired and loved. I really thought that racism was a thing of the past and blacks enjoyed all the rights and opportunities that we all had. Even though I loved history, I was pretty ignorant of the details of the civil rights movement of the 60's.
I can remember being mystified by the verdict in the OJ Simpson trial. I saw that as a crime against a woman and I felt a gulf between myself and blacks. Then I saw the video of the shooting of Walter Scott in NC and I thought this has been happening for a long time but we are only just now seeing it because of the easy availability of video.
In sept 2018 our church made a trip to Montgomery, Al. I went because I was off work and I like my church people and don't get to spend enough time with them. I really only had a foggy idea about The Legacy Museum and The Memorial for Peace and Justice that we were going to. The whole experience opened my eyes. The words at the memorial were not sugar coated like I'm used to in reading history. They spoke of lynching as terrorism. It was a moving memorial to a painful past that so many Americans do not want to confront.
Earlier in 2017 I was able to go the Martin Luther King Memorial and the Museum of African American History in DC. Both were eye opening. I also made it to the Civil Rights Museum in Memphis where Martin Luther King was assassinated. I have some more places on my list to visit when I can.
We live out in the county. We are about 6 miles from a small town. We have 30 acres but also have neighbors and have been here 25 years now. When we moved here the kids were in grade school and we had a dial up internet connection and no cell phones. Things have really changed. Now we have no house phone and our internet has increased in importance. It did get me through online classes at Murray state and I can stream and use the internet. I know some rural areas haven't had it as good as we have. It's lately been from At&t and is fixed wireless. It has a dish to work and would drop the signal frequently for seconds at a time. It was like the signal was stuttering. Sometimes it would work just fine. You just never knew and there are few other options. Well yesterday we got highspeed fiber internet. I feel like we've come into the 20th century. It's hard to function now without a reliable internet connection.
I have elderly relatives who have dropped their internet service. I know it's not easy to keep up with technology but it's so important if you want to stay connected. I go to Sunday school on zoom and skype with my daughter in London. Streaming TV has replaced the networks and cable and it's better. So many changes. We all have to keep changing too.
I have to say that everyone has been ready to put 2020 behind us. No big new years celebrations here though with COVID being rampant and the weather also bad. Then came Jan 6. A large group of Trump supporters stormed the capital as the legislators were confirming the election results from the electoral college. It was really a formality. Trump claimed the election had been stolen from him and encouraged his supporters to action. They broke into the capitol disrupting the vote and searching for Mike Pence and Nancy Pelosi. There were multiple injuries and several fatalities and Trump remained silent. Everyone watched the footage on TV. So now we are having another impeachment trial after Joe Biden has taken office. Some republicans have condemned Trump's actions but the majority are standing with him. I doubt that the impeachment will be successful. I think impeachment is too good for the man and I hope he goes to prison. I have been shocked by Trump's incompetence and dishonesty but also by the fact that the majority of Republicans remain silent and have continued in their support.
Jan 20 Inauguration day was like sweet balm to my soul. I'm hoping the political drama can cease and we can all be vaccinated soon. Everyone is wanting a better 2021 than 2020 was.
