Clinton Township Newsletter

3 n o v e m b e r 2 0 2 2 What would our future selves tell us now, if they could? When I ask anyone what they would tell their younger selves, often the men will say "Buy Amazon stock/Facebook stock/Bitcoin!, etc." (and then sell them before 2022). When I ask women this same question, they often answer, "Relax. everything will work out." and "Hug your loved ones tight." I now have so many questions for all of my late grandparents, deceased long ago. "What was the Spanish Flu like for you and your family? Tell me more about the Great Depression. What were the roaring twenties like for you? Who was the most famous person you ever met? What were your biggest fears, your greatest joys, and your most satisfying journeys? Do you have any regrets?" For my maternal grandmother: "What was it like losing your father at such a young age? What was that like for your mother, with no government assistance available at the time? And what was it like being female and graduating from college, in the south, in the 1920s?" I have many questions, too, about my maternal grandfather. I know more about his childhood because his father, my great-grandfather, wrote books about it. The escapades they, a family of nine, took through the bayous of Florida sound like so much fun, and I remember his siblings, my great aunts, and uncles, as elderly people who retained their child-like sense of joy and adventure. I wish I had known my paternal grandfather, who never met a stranger, and knew better my paternal grandmother, who was bedridden for about fifteen years throughout my entire childhood and teen years. I wonder, if my children from 40 years hence, could return to this time and tell me about their lives -- what they would say? What have they learned from me and their dad? What should we be doing differently and what are we doing now that will stick with them, for better or worse? Most of all, are their future selves happy? And healthy? If I could go back and talk to my younger self, (besides saying that everything will work out) I would say people change radically sometimes so never get locked into thinking that people and things will always stay the same. Scientists might become artists, artists might become lawyers, parents become elderly, good friends become widows and widowers and children become adults and have... children. I know this on paper, of course, but experiencing it in real life is, I find, quite a bit different. I've learned over and over to appreciate when life does stay the same, especially given the massive damage that the latest hurricane, Ian, wreaked on one of our favorite vacation spots, Sanibel Island, Florida. My husband and I keep checking out before and after photos of our favorite places to stay, see, eat and shop on the island, and we just can't wrap our heads around the reality. If you have your family gathered at your Thanksgiving meal, remember to ask questions and I hope that you're able to savor the joys of giving thanks. Happy Thanksgiving! -Julie Flynn DAYS TO KEEP IN MIND Tuesday November 1 All Saints' Day Wednesday November 2 All Souls' Day Thursday November 3 National 'Men Make Dinner' Day ☺ Saturday November 5 National Redhead Day Sunday November 6 NYC Marathon Sunday November 6 Daylight Saving Time Ends Friday November 11 Veterans Day Sunday November 13 Sadie Hawkins Day Wednesday November 16 International Day for Tolerance Thursday November 17 Great American Smokeout Thursday November 24 Thanksgiving Day Monday November 28 Cyber Monday Tuesday November 29 Giving Tuesday Sunday November 27 First Sunday of Advent from Carol Beder's "Showing gratitude is one of the simplest yet most powerful things humans can do for each other." ~ Randy Pausch

• Cover