HAVE FAITH: TIMES CHANGE, SO DO WE

I think that it is only human nature that we talk a lot about the times -- current times as opposed to times past.  In so doing, we moralize a lot and mend little.  It seems to be a kind of privilege, charter and birthright among older folk in particular to praise past times and deplore the present.

There is no question that great changes take place from the season of youth to that of grey hair.  In my own 70-plus years the pulling down of old houses and buildings and the erection of new ones; the death of several generations and the birth of new ones; the alterations in customs and fashions; the changes in the opinions of society; modes of travel; the exploration of outer space; the colossal growth of science and technology, have greatly altered the world in which we live.

We used to take matters quietly and quite in stride.  We functioned at a more leisurely pace than is the case in today's hustle and bustle world.  Everything has grown by leaps and bounds and continues to do so.  We generally agree that "things are crazy today" and "it's a new world out there."

But while times, manners, customs, opinions and lifestyles are changing, we older folk should be aware that we are changing too.  Our limbs used to be more flexible and our brows less wrinkled.  Energy wanes and grey hair tells a tale to which we ought to listen.  Sadly, we have passed through more years than the number that lay ahead of us and for that reason I think we should be thinking less of times past and more about times to come.  And that's a mouthful for a nostalgia buff like me who has spent a lot of time living in, and thinking about, the past.

Maybe, just maybe, amid the alterations of the times and the sundry and manifold changes of the world, we seniors of today should spend less time singing the praises of the past and instead look to a higher spiritual power that has never changed  over the course of centuries, and never will.  I think you know what I am talking about.

We can supplement times today by reaching back and bringing forward the simple faith that existed in the wonderful times past, thereby assuring true joy in the ever-changing times ahead!