“The world is becoming such a scary place!”

“Things are so much worse than they used to be!”

“I wish we could go back to simpler times!”

“Things are just going to get worse and worse.”

These are things I hear all the time. I’m just not sure they are true.

What is true is that the worldwide web and the 24-hour news cycle keeps us up-to-date on all the terrible things that happen all over the world.

But are there more terrible things happening now than at any other time in history?

Probably not.

Yes, we as a planet are facing some terrible problems. And, we as a population are probably more aware of those problems than any prior generation.

The question is this. What do we do with that awareness? Do we allow the news of the day to keep us in a state of fear and anger? Or do we stay balanced and proactive, and look to the future with hope?

In many ways, we have already come a long way to correct problems of the past.

On a walk through the woods today I saw several butterflies that were almost extinct when I was a child.

When I was a child professional women were a rarity. If a doctor was female we referred to her as a “lady doctor.” Now, we would just call her “Doctor.”

Yes, we have some terrible problems with our legal system. But in earlier days corpses would adorn the village gates to remind newcomers to mind their manners.

I am sure we will solve today’s problems just as we solved yesterday’s problems. We won’t have perfect solutions, but we will probably move forward in the correct direction.

I’m not suggesting we ignore the problems of today. But let’s not forget to celebrate how far we’ve come. Let’s be hopeful about our future.  Let’s think positive thoughts about our planet. And, if we need to, let’s turn off the 24-hour news cycle and read a book!