The Widder Curry Has Questions for Her – and Our – Next Year

By Judi Curry

As another birthday year comes to an end, I look into the crystal ball and wonder what the next year will bring.

I don’t remember ever seeing the ball as dark as it is tonight – very few shining lights peek through the fog.  Will we be at war in the next few weeks?  Will the former President of the United States be held accountable for his actions – and his lack of actions?

Will he have to answer questions about his part of the January 6th resurrection? Will he have to answer why he took to Florida 15 boxes of classified information?  Will he have to answer to the New York Attorney General his business dealings? Will he run for office again in 2024? And if he does will the American people reelect him?

What does the future hold for my children and grandchildren?

And now that I have 7 great-grandchildren what will happen to them? Will they live in a democracy or will they live in a country that tells them what to do and when to do it?

Will they be able to read the books that I read; will they be taught about slavery, racism, and prejudice? Will they be taught about the holocaust and realize that they had relatives that carried tattooed numbers on their arms because of their religious beliefs and not because they thought that tattoos were fun?

Will the women in my family be free to work outside the home; will they be able to have call the shots for their own bodies?  Will any of my kin be members of the LGBT community?  Will it be legal to belong to such a group?

Will assault weapons finally be outlawed or will the senseless killings continue to fester in the United States?  Will the pandemic be over or will people still have to carry masks in their pockets?

What about the air we breathe?  Will there be answers to climate change and will people abide by the solutions to the problem? Will everyone in the United States be able to drink clean water?

Will our utility and gasoline expenses be reasonable or will people need to live on the streets because they can’t afford housing? Will rentals come down in price or will we be living in Airbnb situations. Will neighborhoods exist as we know them today? Will the younger generation be able to afford to purchase their own homes?

This past year has been fraught full of uncertainty.

There has been little cooperation between friends, adversaries, and even relatives. One day something is said about COVID, and the next day it is refuted by another.  The broadcasters no longer speak the truth. The days of Walter Cronkite are over on some popular stations. And in some instances if what has just been heard isn’t liked, that journalist is killed.

We are fed untruth after untruth, and scattered amongst those untruths there is sometimes a true statement made by people we respect. We are quoted lies all the time and what was a scientific theory becomes a political statement that is usually not true.  It is a scary time in our society and I fear for my children.

No…I fear for more than my children – I fear for the United States of America.  This birthday year has made me question the sanity of the American people.  My greatest wish is that people come to their senses; that regardless of their political beliefs they analyze what is best for the American public and strive to remove those imperfections that are bringing us down now.

It is with hope that we regain our status in the world today because of wise decisions, not because of bullying and prejudices.  There is so much at stake – be wise, people.  It is truly a life and death situation.