Cowboys & Indians And Doc Holliday
I truly don’t think I’m in the minority when I wonder about what is going on in our Country.
Personally, I feel like truth, honesty, morality, politics, religion have all been quickly turned upside down and inside out with an agenda that is purposely vague and veiled. And … somehow we’re expected to accept all these changes as the new norm — without question or access for discussion or disagreement.
I do think we are struggling somewhat to make sense of what is going on (and has been going on for sometime now) because we really don’t know history. It seems like every generation lives within the context of their own times without considering how they got there and where they will be heading due to their choices and actions. We get locked into what is relatively important to us at the time.
That’s not necessarily a bad/wrong thing. However, we risk losing the ability to objectively look at the present in such a way as to make wise choices and decisions not just based upon personal desire but upon what is beneficial for now and the future.
I hate to continually sound like the proverbial old guy complaining about the present while praising the past (my past). I actually try not to let my perspective cloud an honest look at the present. I also try hard not to measure the present by the “glorious” past. The present must always be looked at in hindsight with an honest foresight toward the future. The past wasn’t always glorious and the future doesn’t always fail to live up to the past.
With that said … as the proverbial old guy … I honestly can’t grasp the changes that have swept over the landscape of our Country in my lifetime.
Much of it is good: Inventions to enhance life, improvements in just about all areas, advancements in the medical arena.
A lot of it is bad: The Bible is no longer America’s guide, morality is as close to demonic as possible, every day we kill multitudes of unborn babies without thought or remorse, and we’re supposed to accept and obey a Government that stands behind, endorses and promotes all of this evil. Does this not cause you as a believer in Christ to tremble in fear? It does me.
A lot has happened exponentially in a relatively short span of time.
I’ve lived through black & white TV, AM and FM radio, rotary phones and operators, telephone books, typewriters, carbon paper, mimeograph machines, White-Out, Liquid Paper, word processors, computers with gigantic floppies, flash bulb cameras, 45’s, LP’s, turntables, reel-to-reel players, eight track players, cassette players, video recorders .… But now I have all of that or its equal sitting in my pocket on my iPhone.
And, as the proverbial old guy … “when I was growing up” … I lived in a time when young, impressionable boys could actually (without fear) go outside and play with their neighborhood friends.
One of the things we played was Cowboys & Indians. (We didn’t know certain terms were “insensitive” or “pejorative” and … Indian Head nickels were still in circulation.) We chose two leaders and they’d take turns picking who would be on what side. And if you can actually believe it, there were those who got “killed” and those who got to live.
But here’s what it did for us …
We got to learn by way of personal experience what is now constantly being pushed down our throats: The inequities in life.
It caused us to wonder (if we so desired to think about it) why the Indian was always “the bad guy” and why the Cowboy was always “the good guy”. Nobody is always “good” and nobody is always “bad.”
We also got to experience what it felt like to win and what if felt like to loose. When the Indians “won” they felt good about their victory. When the Cowboys “won” they in turn felt good. But if one side constantly won, nobody felt good about that. And we also learned that life isn’t always fair.
We were allowed to sift through our emotions. Our emotions (good or bad) enabled us to look at ourselves as human beings. We learned first hand how to treat others and how we wanted to be treated in return.
And as you got older, it enabled you to look at history through your own eyes verses always accepting how things were, or were not, presented. It was a process of learning objectively and subjectively. You actually started to form your own perspectives rather than just accept the perspectives as presented.
That is sorely missing in our Country now. It’s either the “accepted” way or not at all. We are no longer able to have a discourse in which both parties can have differing views. And if you dare to challenge the new accepted norms you get maligned, ostracized and worse.
Try having a civil discussion about the merits or non-merits of wearing masks. There is no room for discussion because “science” is now the god at whose feet we are expected/required to bow. The magic phrase to end all discussion is … “the science says.” I truly didn’t know we had so many officials, politicians, businessmen (Gates) that are expert scientists. (see link - scroll down to: Here’s When This Pandemic Ends And What Happens Next. You’ll be glad you read this.)
While thinking about this a verse came to mind. It’s the Apostle Paul admonishing Timothy.
“O Timothy, keep that which is committed to thy trust, avoiding profane and vain babblings, and oppositions of science falsely so called:” 1 Timothy 6:20. (I do believe the KJV translators knew exactly what they were doing, and why, when they chose the word “science.”)
Alright, so how does Doc Holliday fit into all of this?
I like reading about Western history. I read historical books and historical fiction novels about the Cowboy era. I am drawn in particular to two figures that loom over that era: Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday.
I am presently reading the first book in a series of three historical fiction novels on the life of Doc Holliday. The series is called: Southern Son The Saga Of Doc Holliday. The first book is entitled: Inheritance. It’s written by Victoria Wilcox. This first book is a fascinating and wonderful read. Very few books I read draw me in to where I can actually visualize the events and hear the voices. It’s been great.
Well, one day while happily reading this book I came across something that jarred me. I can’t elaborate on the context. It would take too long. That being true, some of the impact will be lost. But, I will try to highlight what arrested my attention.
Briefly, here’s the setting. This part is fact: Holliday, from the deep South, goes to dentist college in Pennsylvania. This part is the novel speaking: After he graduates he comes home and is asked what it was like living in Yankee territory right on the heals of the Civil War. The fictional Holliday says:
“It was hard at first,” he admitted, “like livin’ in a foreign country, almost. They don’t understand anything about us or what we were fightin’ for. They all talk about the ‘Emancipation of the Slaves,’ like that’s all the War was about. Keepin’ a slave isn’t somethin’ worth dyin’ for! BUT THE RIGHT TO CHOOSE WHAT YOU WILL DO — NOW THAT’S A CAUSE. SEEMS LIKE WE’VE LOST OUR OWN FREEDOM, WHEN THE GOVERNMENT CAN TELL US HOW WE OUGHT TO LIVE OUR LIVES.” (Emphasis mine.) This book was written in 2013 with a view to the mindset of the times in which she writes about.
It appears to me that for a long time now we, as a nation, have been slowly losing our Cause. Seems like we don’t even know how or why our Country got its birth. If John Adams and our Founding Fathers were alive today, they would be thrown in jail. And you know why they’d be thrown in jail? Because they wouldn’t just roll over and do what is so blatantly un-American. They would, as they did at our Founding, stand and fight for what they believed in … unto death. We don’t seem to have that sort of character or belief any longer.
And for those of us living in New Hampshire, we, for cryin’ out loud, live in a state whose motto is: LIVE FREE OR DIE. Well, we can’t live free and we aren’t allowed to die.
One closing thought to consider.
I feel compelled to remind us that historically in our nation, the Church/God’s people have always been at the forefront of the times fighting for Truth and against Evil.
We have, as Holliday alludes, lost our Cause worth dyin’ for! The Church, in handing over its reins to the Government, has forfeited its very right to exist. We open our doors when Government says we can and we keep them shut when Government tell us to … and all without one word of opposition. Pathetic.
We’ve also lost, as the Church, not only our Cause but our Way. We are groping around like we don’t know where we’ve come from or where we’re heading. We do what the powers that be tell us to do. We no longer stand up and fight for what we’re supposed to fight for. The Lord Jesus Himself said He would build His Church and that the gates of Hell itself would not prevail against it. Demonic, hellish antagonism is to be expected. Opposition and persecution are to be the norm not the exception.
Doesn’t seem like we really believe that anymore. Hell seems to be gaining the upper hand.
Christ died for the Church. He, in turn, expects us to fight for it. We are to resist all the forces which stand in opposition to the Church and its Divine mission. We are citizens of Heaven first and America last. It’s time we accept that and act accordingly.
Now, go out and play Cowboys & Indians.