Soapbox. My "Short Bus" has reached its' destination???

[Cut and Pasted]From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"A soapbox is a raised platform on which one stands to make an impromptu speech, often about a political subject. The term originates from the days when speakers would elevate themselves by standing on a wooden crate originally used for shipment of soap or other dry goods from a manufacturer to a retail store.

The term is also used metaphorically to describe a person engaging in often flamboyant impromptu or unofficial public speaking, as in the phrases "He's on his soapbox", or "Get off your soapbox." Hyde Park, London is known for its Sunday soapbox orators, who have assembled at Speakers' Corner since 1872 to discuss religion, politics and other topics. A modern form of the soapbox is a blog: a website on which a user publishes one's thoughts to whomever reads the page."

So, WELCOME TO MY SOAPBOX!!! Lately, it has occurred to me that my awareness of the world has been changing as I reach middle age. (At least I HOPE it's my middle) The "World" of my youth, the one I just KNEW, was mine for the taking, has slowly decayed to the "World" of my hopefully middle age. [Don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that it is a bad thing, and this is not some manifesto to the world before I jump off a tall building.] My "World" now, has proven to be much more complicated now that I have come to grips with the fact that I really don't know EVERYTHING! My "World" now is so much deeper. Even deeper than when I realized my Parents really were right. [Insert Homer Simpson, DOH!!, here] So deep, that when I see the fresh faced youth of today, I can only think of it like a scene from some war movie. You know the scene: Grizzled veterans of too many battles watching as the new recruits go marching into the war. The vets shake their heads knowing that some will be "cannon fodder" in the war of life.

I can honestly say that at this point in my life I am at peace with my place in the "World". But, as I've gotten older (wiser??) it seems that the "World" is getting scarier. Which leads me to question: "Is it getting scarier? Or am I just now realizing that it has always been scary, and my "Short Bus" has reached its' destination?" Regardless, I will continue on my journey, sending dispatches from my soapbox, along the way.