Early Morning Thoughts

by Wayne Rich

Here it is 4:30 in the morning and I can’t fall back to sleep. Being awake this time of night is not new to me. I have Parkinson’s disease. Difficulty sleeping is just one of my many symptoms. Sometimes I am able to play games with myself to help me fall asleep. Tonight my diseased brain is not accepting anything but awake. I refuse to turn on the TV. The news will be full of sensational footage of demonstrations; some have turned into riots. I can’t help but feel like the world has seen this before.

As a matter of fact a quick review of history reveals that this scene has been acted out on a multitude of stages throughout recorded history. Almost every form of government has gone through the type of unrest we are experiencing. It has always been the beginning of the end. Is it possible to make the ending be different this time? Our form of government that seemed so perfect yesterday no longer works.

The USA has Parkinsons disease. It is getting progressively worse with no cure in sight. The disease has attacked each branch of government separately but the result surprisingly has appeared to be very similar in each branch. This disease is very committed to destroying the checks and balances designed by our founding fathers. Each branch shows a public disrespect for all of the other branches. It is hard to pinpoint just when it started going wrong. Each generation since I have been alive has chosen to willingly give up more and more personal freedom in exchange for the government managing more of their lives. In effect feeding this out of control disease.

Our government is a living breathing entity with a strong will to grow bigger and stronger. Each branch of our government has worked hard to weaken the other branch’s power. That is how each branch of our government has become stronger.

Is it too late to save us? Has the disease progressed so far that even if we find a cure it will be too late?

Small communities in general run more smoothly than large ones, and people tend to treat each other with more respect. What if each of us decided to act like we were in a small community? What if each of us decided it was important that we get along with our neighbors? With that in mind . . . what if each of us started every day with a goal of doing one (or more) good deed(s) that day? Most of us have a smart phone. A way to keep on track would be to create a daily check off on your phone when a good deed is done. I know that this seems like such a small thing, but I also know that it would not only be helpful to the receiver but would also greatly benefit the giver.

By the way, my Parkinson’s disease seems like less of a burden on days that I have found ways to interact with people as though we lived together in a small community.

Finding ways to share a smile is a key ingredient.