Growing old in a small town
The New York Times has a great piece on their website about growing old in rural America, where even the nearest small town can be a long haul away.
Mr. Burgess, who has lived and worked for most of his 96 years in Wyoming and Nebraska as a hired farmhand and in later years as a machinist, still drives his truck almost every day into Torrington, Wyo., about eight miles from his home, for a hot lunch at the senior center.The article paints a warm, rich portrait of old folks trying to make life work at the end of their days, with spouses gone, children moved away, and government programs shrinking.
But his driver’s license expires in January, and he is deeply worried that he might not pass the test this time around.
It's a story that rings as true here in the North Country as in Wyoming or Nebraska.
posted by Brian Mann @ 12/09/2009 10:39:00 PM
2 Comments
2 Comments:
That ws a lovely story in the Times. It's familiar, and timely. I think it also shows that the cultural divide has long been with us. A tough nut watching the view from her solitary residence is far removed from someone playing shuffleboard in a retirement community where every activity is planned. Neither is morally superior; but the narratives of American lives have long been separate and diverse.
I posted above- but need to add that the reason the animosity wan't as high, culturally, was that our individual lives were left alone. There ws much more individual and local privacy. Now that we are legislating fairness, and diversity, we have given up the live-and-let live philosophy that was possible in the days before the 24-7 news cycle.
Post a Comment
<< Home