Douglas Firs have been known to live for over 1000 years. They were able to outlive changes in weather patterns and political upheavals. Will they survive global warming and the pressure of population growth?

Last week, my grandson asked me what world events had affected me the most. As I thought about it, I realized there were several that influenced the way I act and think today.

The first one that came to mind was the polio epidemic. I remember magazine photos with people’s heads sticking out of iron lungs. When a child at the summer camp I attended came down with polio, the camp closed and I received a painful shot of gamma globulin. Having a physician for a father made it less fearsome, for I naively trusted him to keep me safe. It wasn’t until the Salk vaccine was distributed that fears receded and my family returned to the beach for vacations.

The next major influence was the Cold War. Children were drilled in school to duck and cover while neighbors built bomb shelters in their back yards. In Boston where I lived at the time, I was sure the historical city would be among the first to be destroyed. I begged my husband to move further inland where, again naively,  I was sure Russian bombs couldn’t reach. The Soviet Union’s demise with the Berlin wall coming down was a high point in my life. I could sleep soundly, believing that under Gorbachev, our enemy nation would become democratic friends. 

Now as I watch Putin rebuild an empire, I don’t trust Russia and wonder why anyone would. My grandparents suffered in pogroms and had to escape Russian brutality. I feel  pain when I see how Ukrainians are treated as they fight to keep their freedom. It is unleashed cruelty.

The sixties and seventies civil rights marches, the women’s movement, and the Vietnam protests ring loudest in my ears. Though it was an epoch of anger and civil disobedience, it was also a time of hope and caring. My friends and I believed it was possible to change minds through marches and by standing up for what is right. We were known as the love generation and fought for compassion. Our call for equality, justice, and peace remains embedded in my psyche. It influences my thinking about abortion, gun control, and freedom. I believe people have the right to vote and live with their beliefs without being bullied and disavowed. The era made me question demigods who make decisions benefiting a few at the expense of the masses. 

The era also introduced a way to stay calm in the face of chaos. The Beatles, Ram Das, and the Marahashi brought eastern thinking westward. The practice of meditation and yoga gave people tools to deal with difficult issues from a calm center. Meditation and pilates (related to yoga) gave me the strength and courage to manage large organizations and a rambunctious young family. 

Though other there were other wars over the last fifty years, it wasn’t until the World Trade Center came down, that the ground under my feet shook again. It ushered in an era of paranoia, lies, and hatred that continues today. We were told to distrust and invade Iraq and found out later that they didn’t have weapons of mass destruction. People began paying attention to a bandwagon of conspiracy theories that made no sense. There are still those who believe that our government brought about the trade building’s demise, that Hitler didn’t exterminate Jews, that the Sandy Hook massacre wasn’t real, oxycontin isn’t addictive, and that the 2020 election was stolen. Lies, lies, lies.

The Middle East wars escalated drug use and immigration fears. Propaganda took over newscasts so that now half the country wants to throw daggers at the other half, whoever they may be. It is confusing to know what to believe, but everyone knows it’s good to have a scapegoat. Who cares if you hate the gays, the immigrants, the abortionists, the Muslims, and Jews?

Amidst global warming, a media that promotes false information, escalating pandemics, electronic communication, artificial intelligence, nuclear war drums, and genetic breakthroughs, society is shaken to the core. The word compromise has taken on sinister meanings that negate empathy and common sense. Authoritarianism is pushed by oligarchs and religious fanatics who are sure they know best for everyone. No longer valuing freedoms granted in the constitution, they want to control the laws of the land and manipulate the way people behave. All I can say about such behavior is to beware and resist. Demigods are self-serving and dangerous.

My hope is that children receive a broad, balanced education that teaches them to think broadly so they can solve complex issues. We need intelligent educated leaders to cut through the bullshit. And since the country is a melting pot of races and religions and is a player on the world scene, we need people who believe the whole to be more important than any one individual. As a woman of peace, I maintain hope that the wrong being done today rights itself.

I’d love to hear what events influenced your life. Please comment below.

20″x 16″ canvas prints of my tree paintings are available for $70. To see the entire collection of 28 trees go to https://www.eichingerfineart.com/collections/142242. The best way to reach me is at marilynne@eichinigerfineart.com.