Remember When?Remember when you slept with your windows open and the thought of being burglarized or assaulted never entered your mind Remember when the only time the front door to your house was locked was when your family went out of town or on vacation? Remember when you could leave your car parked with the windows down and the key in the ignition and not worry about it being stolen Remember when children called adults Sir and Ma'am? Remember when males were called Mr. And females were called Miss. Or Mrs. Remember when it was a disgrace to become pregnant before marriage Remember when it was a male's duty to marry the female he made pregnant Remember when only one parent earned the income for the entire household Remember when medical insurance was not needed since medical bills were affordable Remember when people broke the law they were punished Remember when you could leave your bicycle outside over night and it was still there the next morning Remember when teachers used to paddle bad students Remember when troublemakers at school were expelled for the year Remember when you and your family used to personally know all of the neighbors on your block Remember when you were taught that problems were a part of life and you were expected to solve them on your own Remember when it was a disgrace to be on the government dole Remember when you were expected to give 8 hours work for 8 hours pay Remember when the mother stayed home and provided guidance and care for her children Remember when you could take a bad child home to his parents for punishment without the fear of being arrested for child abuse Remember when the parents would actually punish the punk Remember when children had to memorize math tables and the text of various poems and articles Remember when no exceptions were given to violators of rules, regulations and laws Remember when badly behaved children in school were punished not drugged with Ritalin Remember when the parents were held fully accountable for their children's behavior Remember when children didn't talk back to adults Remember when "beyond a reasonable doubt" was all that was necessary to convict a criminal Remember when a criminal's sentence really meant that they would be off the street for that long Remember when you could not sue if it was your fault or you were negligent Remember when everyone had to take the same tests in school Remember when you did not need automobile insurance Remember when there was no state sales tax Remember when the rule of the road was to yield to the car on the right at a four way intersection Remember when people took turns Remember when welfare was there to keep people from starving-commodities only Remember when people did not have credit cards? If you did not have the money, you did not buy it Remember when the grocery store (and pharmacy) used to deliver your order Remember when a prospective employer could ask someone if they were on drugs, had an arrest record, or ask their former employer about their work history Remember when a young person entered work in a business and stayed there until their retirement Remember when your ability to produce and be productive was more important than a piece of paper stating that your parents were able to send you through college Remember when advancement within a business was based upon your self-determination and drive instead of academic accomplishments in fields unrelated to the job to be performed Remember when people used to wait their turn Remember manners at the table? In a social environment Remember non-union apprenticeship positions Remember when there was no drug problems Remember when men gave their seat to a lady Remember when children were taught not to touch Remember Emily Post Remember when nude pictures of women had black censorship stripes across their private parts Remember when McCarthy found a hotbed of socialists and communists in Hollywood Remember when men went to the draft when they were called, because they were obeying the law Remember nuclear bomb shelters and school nuke drills Remember when it was expected by society for you to graduate from high school Remember when you would get into serious trouble for damaging or vandalizing other's property Remember the horror of reform school if you committed a crime Remember when you walked the streets at night and never thought about being assaulted Remember when neighbors helped each other when disaster or sickness occurred Remember when parents supervised their young children while they were playing with small toys Remember when it was a parent's duty to teach their children proper gun safety Remember when we blamed the criminal, not the weapon Remember when sexual perverts were kept out of sight or in jail Remember when gays were called queers and their actions not condoned by society Remember when schools were not ruled by the federal government Remember when public schools taught the basic fundamentals of education and it was up to the individual to utilize this basic knowledge to advance themselves in higher education Remember when telling the truth was a badge of honor Remember vagrancy laws Remember sunset laws Remember when criminals had no rights other than what the Constitution provided per se Remember when the state and federal government did not dictate vacation, hiring, and leave policies of private business Remember when kids had paper routes Remember when it was the status quo for older children to hold summer jobs Remember when people "left the nest" when they reached 19 years of age sRemember when stores opened at 8, lunch was at 12, and closing time was 5 Remember when kids sacked groceries Remember when the President of the United States was a role model we wanted our children to emulate Remember when small towns had small businesses, small grocery stores, and small shops Remember when people did not go to physiologists for problems they could solve themselves Remember when women were feminine and males were masculine Remember when you could give a girl a compliment and not loose your job? Or get sued Remember when we used to play "cowboys and indians" without feeling guilty Remember when boys were boys and girls were girls Remember waiting for the blessing to be said before you started eating Remember going to Sunday School every Sunday morning? Remember the church suppers that evening Remember going to the show every Saturday? Usually a "cowboy and indian" flick! Remember getting a haircut at least once every two weeks Remember stopping and holding your right hand over your heart when you heard the "Pledge of Allegiance" or our national anthem Remember when men did not wear their hair in "pony tails?" Remember how much better our criminal justice system was before the ACLU destroyed it Remember when the ice man (and milk man) made deliveries into your unlocked house while you slept or were away Remember the phrase "respect other's property and privacy?" Remember when people had no sympathy for people who were simply too lazy to work Remember when the only thing taken out of your paycheck was social security and income tax Remember when banks were permanent and you knew everyone there Remember when it was the parents responsibility and duty to raise their children with the morals and beliefs passed down from their parents Remember when you could say any words you wished without persecution, or worse yet, the chance of having your life destroyed by loss of job or career |