Is grass really greener 'over there'?

A recent letter to the editor expounded on the USA’s deplorable situation compared to other nations. I can’t help but wonder if that person actually knows someone who has personally had to deal with the situation in those countries?

I have two non-American friends with personal experience in health care:

1. A friend in Fort St John, B.C., was diagnosed with breast cancer. She had to wait one year for scheduled surgery.

2. An 89 year old widow near Frankfurt, Germany, has been very sick during this past year, most recently affecting her brain. When I asked if she had been to the hospital, she responded - “Oh no, they are so overcrowded. It is not a good place to be.”

Are we simply frustrated and think “people in charge” are doing something wrong? Somebody is responsible and needs to be blamed?

Are we plagued by erroneous expectations and wishful thinking when looking beyond ourselves into areas beyond our expertise?

Wisdom says it’s not wise to compare ourselves with others, but evaluate ourselves on a standard of reality. An old Indian proverb says - don’t judge another until you’ve walked a mile in his moccasins.

I don’t see much of that wisdom being exercised among our media, Congressmen, or “us spectators.” We all like to be wise, choose sides, and consider ourselves having wisdom...

But what determines our credibility for speaking with authority?

I thank God for those with integrity who are willing to offer themselves to serve others in spite of the challenges - whether in business, politics, or medicine - especially considering the abuse we consuming spectators cast on them. The laborer is worthy of his hire.

Corruption in any realm is destructive to us all. If it were not for God’s mercy and long suffering, not willing that anyone be lost, the human race would have self-destructed long ago. May we each accept personal responsibility for our own dominions, recognize the “stories” we are in NO position to verify, and pray for those distant from our own realm.

— Laura McGlasson

Libby