What finally did it for me, after listening to and reading the endless carping about the election, was the Dec. 13 Maine Voices column suggesting – actually demanding – that Brexit leader Nigel Farage be banned from living in Maine.

Never in my 80 years on this planet, through world war, police actions, numerous elections and political scuffles, have I seen so many Americans inflict their rancid opinions on their fellow Americans. So much anti-everything from so many people, it boggles the mind. “When will it end?” one would ask, or perhaps “Will it ever end?” is the better question.

My reading informs me sometimes of my own frailties. This from “Into Dust and Fire,” a book by Rachel S. Cox detailing the story of five young Americans who volunteered to serve in the British army before America entered World War II.

One of them, Jack Brister, noted in his diary: “My acclimating ability doesn’t seem as functional as it should. … Why is this? It may have something to do with a muddled mood I get in – spend an awful amount of time trying to find something to worry about. Shear it off – you’ve only got so much energy per day, boy! You’re rationed, look to it. There’s no use making your own hurdles.”

Jack Brister was killed by a German shell in North Africa, just a day before he was scheduled to join the U.S. Army.

His words and advice now come to you, thanks to Ms. Cox – as my Scottish father-in-law used to say, “Give it a think.” Stop making your own hurdles.

Ronald G. Thurston

Falmouth


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