Americans Often Have Trouble Enjoying The Present

Polls Are Frequently Taken To Try To Tease Out Or Determine Likely Directions And Trends, But Once Taken, They Belong To The Past, Requiring That New Polls Be Taken.

I Have A Great Advantage Over Many Of My Colleagues Inasmuch As My Students Bring With Them To Class Their Own Personal Knowledge Of National, Regional, Religious, Ethnic, Occupational, And Family Folklore Traditions.

Ancestor Worship, Or Filial Piety So Characteristic Of Asian Cultures, For Example, Does Not Really Resonate With Americans Who Favor Children, Not Grandparents.

In The Light Of Our Culture, These Are Not Unreasonable Questions And Tactics, But If Once Again, We Try To See The Lens Through Which We Look, We Can See That There Is Far Too Great An Emphasis Placed On The Future.

I Mentioned That One Of The Tripartite Formulas In American Worldview Involves Time: Past, Present, And Future.