When Things are Closer than They Appear

The great thing about getting older is that you don’t lose all the other ages you’ve been. Madeleine L’Engle

Do you realize I have never seen the small of my back? I have seen photographs of it, of course, and in those angled groups of mirrors found in dressing rooms one is using to try on clothes to see how they fit. But I’ve never actually seen, with my own eyes, my own backside.

I was pondering that totally uninteresting tidbit of information as I set down a book I’d just finished reading dealing with a bit of American history. As my mind wandered the deserted streets between my ears, I found myself thinking about history as those times or events that lie behind us. Many of us look at history as if we’re passengers on a train pulling out of a station that falls further and further behind. 

Another history buff and I were talking about our common interests and he made an interesting observation. He said, “You know, we westerners look at history as something that lies behind us. We're constantly moving forward, away from it. Other cultures look at the past differently. They see the past in front of them. It’s receding, of course, but it’s the future that’s out of sight – behind them, so to speak. It hasn’t happened yet.”

Interestingly, people in addiction recovery take that second view of history. The Promises of twelve-step recovery programs states, “We will not regret the past, nor wish to shut the door on it.” Rather than running from the awful or shameful things they may have done to themselves or others while in the throes of their addiction, they use those experiences to help them grow into a future filled with hope rather than shame; with courage rather than fear.

There is an old saying that those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it. I suppose that is true, to a degree, but I prefer a more positive approach: Those who study history are bound to find solutions to current conundrums. I know it hasn’t got the same panache as the original, but perhaps it is more helpful. I don’t like doom and gloom. I can’t recall a time when doom and gloom saved me from anything. If anything, it paralyzes me, whereas a clear-eyed view of lessons learned has helped keep me out of the deep doo doo I might otherwise step in.

Now, I know that walking backwards around the house or driving in reverse down the street would not be very healthy for most of us (I wish I would beep when walking backwards), but keeping an eye on the past can be very helpful. For instance, I could be worried about receiving one of the Covid-19 vaccines. I don’t have a crystal ball, so I can’t look into the future and see whether it is safe, effective, or whether or not I will get the disease and die without the vaccine. The future is a mystery.

However, I can look into the past and see the polio and smallpox vaccines I have received and, voila, I have not gotten those diseases. My kids received their MMR (Measles, Mumps, Rubella) shots at the prescribed times and, voila, never came down with those particular diseases. My father received tons of shots when he entered basic training in the army back in the 1940s and, voila, lived to be ninety years old. Consequently, when I made an appointment to receive my Covid-19 vaccine, I did so with full confidence in the scientists who developed the vaccines, the labs that produced the product, and the medical personnel who put those doses into my arm.

Some folks may remember the thalidomide debacle in the 1950s (a drug which caused major issues, like birth defects). Of course that is precisely the sort of rear-facing history that helped to prevent a lot of mistakes after that. Science practices, tests, refines, improves. Scientists aren’t perfect, but they’re willing to acknowledge their mistakes and learn from them.

I may never see the small of my back, but I’m glad it is there to lead me forward (masked and vaccinated) here in this, our valley.

Keith Axberg writes on matters concerning life and faith. Author of newly released: Who the Blazes is Jesus? Good News for a Vulgar World (available through Amazon in Print and e-book)