Keeping things real

"Imagine you were born in 1900. On your 14th birthday, World War I starts, and ends on your 18th birthday. 22 million people perish in that war.

Later in the year, a Spanish Flu epidemic hits the planet and runs until your 20th birthday. 50 million people die from it in those two years. Yes, 50 million.

On your 29th birthday, the Great Depression begins. Unemployment hits 25%, the World GDP drops 27%. That runs until you are 33.
The country nearly collapses along with the world economy.

When you turn 39, World War II starts. You aren’t even over the hill yet. And don’t try to catch your breath. On your 41st birthday, the United States is fully pulled into WWII. Between your 39th and 45th birthday, 75 million people perish in the war.

At 50, the Korean War starts. 5 million perish.

At 55 the Vietnam War begins and doesn’t end for 20 years. 4 million people perish in that conflict.

On your 62nd birthday you have the Cuban Missile Crisis, a tipping point in the Cold War. Life on our planet, as we know it, should have ended. Great leaders prevented that from happening.

When you turn 75, the Vietnam War finally ends.

Think of everyone on the planet born in 1900. How do you survive all of that?

When you were a kid in 1985 and didn’t think your 85 year old grandparent understood how hard school was. And how mean that kid in your class was. Yet they survived through everything listed above. Perspective is an amazing art, refined as time goes on, and enlightening like you wouldn’t believe. Let’s try and keep things in perspective."
——
American author unknown


And yet the world just keeps on turning.

Happy Thanksgiving guys

My grandmother WAS born in 1900..........and January to boot!! She died in 1989. She died not 3 feet from where I'm sitting in my 'office'. Finest lady that ever lived. Grandad was born 1890. What they saw!! I truly wish I had died in 1955 at the age of 105. Born too late. But I'll go ahead and try to make 105 the hard way. LOL!!

Both my grandparents (dad’s side) were born in 1899. “Pop” in June, “Mom” in December. I always thought it would be cool for at least one of them to live to 101 and to have lived in 3 different centuries. (Neither of them made it) :(