Claire L. Hebert-Dow: She remembers the good old days and wonders where they went

To The Daily Sun,

I once had an assistant who suffered from Seasonal Affective Disorder and needed the use of a sunlamp each morning before she came to work. Like seasonal allergies, I could only imagine how discomfiting it was and how fortunate I felt not to be so displaced.

But I'm wondering how to encapsulate the malaise coming over me as I wade through one week after another of political unrest. While I'm not a news junkie, I am interested in keeping up with events near and far. What's most unsettling is how the news impacts my friendships. Maybe because I'm a Boomer and have been around for a while and can remember how each Sunday my very Republican dad would engage in substantive conversations with his very Democratic best friend. 

Where did those days go? And will they ever come back? My son lives in the UK and one of his best friends is a sergeant with the local police force. He's been on duty for over 20 years and doesn't even carry a gun and used his baton once. A little research told me that the last time a band of hooligans tried to burn the Houses of Parliament down in 1605 they were tried for treason and executed. 

Our forefathers surely had our best interests in mind with the First and Second Amendments taking precedence over all others. But have we managed to manipulate them to our advantage through our instant messenger systems? Are we just frustrated because we're rolling into year two of a global pandemic? Are we ticked off because we have lost control? Will my condition end up as an official disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual?

I remember the good old days. Will my grandchildren be able to say the same thing? Will they want to?

Claire L. Hebert-Dow

Laconia