Posted on 04/06/2020 4:23:15 AM PDT by Kaslin
History has a way of repeating itself. In difficult times, American history lets us know that we’re not alone in having to contend with wars, disasters, and pandemics. Past generations found a way through even the most difficult of times. In fact, being only forced to stay home in relative luxury, my complaints seem hollow compared to what our ancestors faced.
In rereading the memoir of my wife’s grandmother, Audrey Jacobi, I found an unexpected gift. Audrey’s father was a splicer for Bell Telephone at the time of the Spanish Flu. Because the phone company would send him wherever his skills were needed, he was often gone for six months or more at a time. They lived near family to ensure necessary support.
At twelve years old, Audrey was forced to help her sick family when the Spanish flu struck. She described the frightening experience: “In 1917, the terrible flu epidemic hit. Mother, my sister, and two brothers were all down at one time. My oldest brother Harry was in the service. We added a second bed to the living room, so I could keep the heater going to keep them warm. We’d shut off the rest of the house. My sister, brother, and I would share one bed at night. I had chores to do—hogs, chickens, cows to feed and milking. I hadn’t seen my father in almost a year, and I wrote him that they were all sick. Our neighbors wouldn’t come near, but some of them brought hot food and would put it by the front gate, then leave. I would go pick up the meals. But that wasn’t very often. Many of our neighbors were sick, and many died.
There was no government stimulus package, no community agencies, just your neighbors and your faith community. My father lived hours away from Audrey, but the difficult times in his memoir were similar.
Homer Paulson remembered his parents talking about the flu and how the lessons learned helped during the great Depression that came years later. Their small farm was in Kirkland, IL, a town of no more than 2,000 souls. They had three churches, one tavern, one café, a library, one bank, one grocery store, and little else.
As a farming family, they were used to preparing for the tough winters every year. They had chickens for eggs and cows and pigs for meat. Their big summer gardens and fruit trees produced many of their reserves. Dad’s mother Vera would can everything. They’d store potatoes that they had almost every meal, either cooked or in potato soup. They had 100 quarts of tomatoes in their basement food cellar along with barrels of apple cider from their orchard. They’d sell the eggs and cider to buy other needed supplies. Because they prepared, they never starved. But in the bad years, their meals were similar and many times meager.
Helping others less fortunate was expected. It came at a cost, but you did what you could, because communities cared for their own. My dad described it well:“To complicate things, mom’s brother, Herman, was out of work and did not have the resources to feed his family. His children came to live with our family for weeks at a time. Our pastor, Rev. Trued, had four children. Mother and Dad would have them come out and stay often to help the pastor get by. All of these extra mouths made it all the harder to makes ends meet. We had a large home, so we could always give them a place to sleep. I can remember that we had to use some old, used books for our classes in school because dad could not afford to buy new ones. During that time, we did not get any new clothes, and we were barefooted most of the time. I don’t remember anyone complaining.”
Reading of their challenges reminds me how blessed we are. We have technology to keep connected to family and friends, entertainment on TV and the Internet whenever needed, and available markets and food deliveries for our necessary supplies. The early hoarding and lines seem to have improved. As with past generations, the COVID-19 Pandemic will change all of us.
My dad saw that in his generation: “Those tough times had long-term effects on us all. … There aren’t many still living that went through those difficult times, and it changed the way we lived the rest of our lives. I think you have to be somewhat conservative, if you lived through it. You know the importance of saving for a rainy day and paying for things in cash instead of getting in debt. I also have to believe that a strong faith in God helped my folks and our family through it all.”
What have we learned so far from the Great COVID-19 Pandemic of 2020? I’ve learned that faith matters. Having a backup supply of food and other essentials matters. Staying connected to family and friends matters. The support and protection of healthcare professionals, non-profit charities, and local, state and federal governments matter. Taking care of your neighbors makes community come alive.
Yes, we must deal with the pandemic reality we face but nurture your hope. Like past generations of Americans, we will get through this and be better and wiser as a result.
“...only forced to stay home in relative luxury, my complaints seem hollow compared to what our ancestors faced. ...”
Bingo.
My parents grew up in the Great Depression, then dad and his brothers went off to fight the Nazis and the Japs. Pretty sure that was much, much worse than this.
Never forget who we are, and where and who we come from.
MEANING COMES SLOWLY!
On Sept 12, 2001, our young daughter looked at us and said, PRAISE THE LORD AND PASS THE AMMUNITION.
That came to my mind vividly this morning as I looked at the headlines. The realization that America has been attacked by an enemy, that innocent people have been killed, that we must reply to China sooner or later...is only now occurring to me in its full meaning!
THINK ABOUT THAT, TODAY.
Amen.
We should all be grateful most of the country is not living the nightmare New York and New Jersey are contending with.
“...only forced to stay home in relative luxury, my complaints seem hollow compared to what our ancestors faced. ...”
Bingo.
Yeah, up until the savings drain and the bills can no longer be paid...
“...until the savings drain and the bills can no longer be paid...”
Pretty sure they faced those issues too. But I hear you. Lot of folks got some hard decisions to make, for sure.
My mother had 7 brothers ...6 of them enlisted during WWII...
5 went to the Pacific and came home again...(miraculous)
The one who went to Europe was killed in Italy and is buried in the Bari War Cemetery...(on the east coast across from Naples)
I was due to visit his grave to honor him this October but the trip I was planning was cancelled due to the Wu Hu Flu...
I think I’m more disappointed in not getting to see Uncle Len’s grave than the rest of the trip...he was my mother’s favorite older brother...I was going for her, also...
All of that generation is gone now... the youngest died in 2014 at age 90...
My generation is now the older members of the family...most of us born after WWII...
All we have are the things our parents told us about the Great Depression or WWII, and if we were lucky to still have grandparents back then, memories of WWI...
My mother spoke a lot about the sinking of the Titanic but she was only 2 months old when that happened ...she was repeating the stories from her parents and other adults...
I can repeat the stories of the coast watchers in the Solomon Islands that my uncles told me but I wasn’t there myself..
Thanks for sharing. Of course, this part of our history is not taught in our public schools. It will also never be placed in context by our media.
I disagree with the author. We will not make it through this in any way resembling the country we once were if we don’t change course immediately. We are totally surrendering to fear of something that is likely to never happen. Fear is winning.
Bump
“We have get through this?!?!?” What language is that??
The country is so strange right now and has been for some time. Their lives are so easy, for the most part, that they actually WANT to be part of every natural disaster and tragedy. They always claim to be personally touched. Everyone is a “survivor”.
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