This is cross posted to my blog, http://northwoodprogressives.typepad.com/
In the wake of the London bombings and the predictable response of the administration, and the failure to set goals at the G8 summit re: global warming, my mind has been doing strange things as I move around my day. What is happening is that when I turn on a faucet I think, “I wonder how I will cope when there is no reliable electricity to pump my water?” When I grocery shop, I think “I wonder how much food I could actually provide for myself if I had to?” When I drive my car, I wonder when fuel will become too expensive or rare for me to go where I need to, never mind where I want to. When I look at the oil tank to see if it needs to be filled, I wonder how I will keep warm in the New England winter. Not panicking, but just thinking and trying to figure out how the future will look. I am convinced it will not look much like today.
I wonder if this means I am giving up hope of making any changes that will prevent the future I see. Not that I will stop working for the changes, politically, because Howard Dean has taught me how to keep moving no matter what. And other experiences in my life have also taught me that I must do the footwork as if it mattered, even when I don’t really believe that it does. Put one foot in front of the other and do the next right thing. So far that has worked.
So I do not despair, but I consider that the world of my old age, should I live to see that, will be a much harsher world, and that keeping my wits about me will be essential. So will learning to live cooperatively. As I work for my town, encouraging people to get involved, to get to know one another, and to work together, and to take responsibility, I am planning for a future that will be more difficult, but perhaps also, in ways we do not imagine, more rewarding as well.
