The Good Old Days

“Fulda, The Quest, Rendezvous, Frostbite, Canada Winter Games… Remember the good ol’ Days, when we just sat around waiting for spring thaw?” Wyatt 02-07

The comments above are from a Wyatt cartoon in the local newspaper recently. The comments are made by a pair of mournful and bewildered looking characters that obviously miss the good old days of Yukon’s past. I am sure the cartoon twigged the wishes of more than a few of us.

I am one of those that miss the “Good Old Days”. I miss the solitude of the drive to and from, the adventure of just living here, the temperatures in Fahrenheit, the occasional shortages and the all-around camaraderie, openness, candor and sincerity of most of the people around me.

In today’s Yukon I seem to be surrounded with zealous commercialism in every public happening, the “let’s do it” attitude is now impossible. Privacy is now attained by staring at a computer screen, walking around with a set of earphones on your head or excusing yourself from personal contact by having a cell phone clamped to your ear. The word “politeness” seems to have been taken out of the dictionary and silence, however you wish to define it is for the most part unattainable.

Being an old resident, I make no excuses for my dislike of the current attitude, demeanor and mind-set of “new” Yukon. Our life at the Lake makes up for much of the clamor and commotion that we have to deal with when we do venture into the City. To some it may appear that I suffer from a bad case reclusion. Not so! I prefer the silence and the sounds of nature to a blaring band or television set. That’s why I came here in the first place. I have developed some eccentric habits over the years but I come by them honestly and work at them by choice. I very much like my solace and share with you a thought I read recently by a fellow called Matthew Kelly who was commenting on the aspects of a monastic calling.

“Silence is a privilege to which all are entitled and which most are robbed in this barbaric age. The monk is not a freak for loving silence, he is simply a normal human being.”