Does This Seem Odd to You?

The other day I was driving through downtown San Bernardino trying to find a Stater Brother’s grocery store where I could get a cashier’s check so that I could reactivate my substitute teaching account. My certification is up so I need to pay a recertification fee so that I can continue subbing.

As I was driving through the neighborhoods of San Bernardino I was having quite some difficulty tracking down a Stater Brother’s grocery store or any other grocery store for that matter. I drove up and down about twenty streets when finally I decided this was a lost cause and headed back to my own home in Colton, where I know where the Stater Brother’s grocery store is located. All this said, it was extremely hard to locate what I deem as a very common and necessary community commodity. What I did notice a lot of, however, as I was driving up and down endless streets was that there were an overabundance of liquor stores on every street corner.

And when I say there was a liquor store on every street corner I’m not exaggerating. I saw at least fifteen liquor stores as I drove around like a lost tourist in a foreign country.

Now I don’t know about you, but this struck me as sort of odd.

I think it is pretty sad that you can drive down almost any street in this country and find a liquor store that is open from the first sliver of sunlight until after 2:00am, however, you can not find a grocery store if your life depended on it.

As I was driving through downtown San Bernardino it was about 3 o’clock in the afternoon. Elementary Schools, Middle Schools, and High Schools were all getting out at this time. I saw kids walking up and down the streets, wandering around aimlessly. Some were just standing on street corners doing nothing while a majority of the kids were going into the liquor stores to buy after schools snacks.

Theses kids don’t know anything different. They are used to seeing a liquor store on every street. Used to seeing drunks passed out in front of the stores. Used to seeing prostitutes. Used to seeing drug deals happening right in front of them as they wander in and out of these stores.

To them, these are everyday occurrences.

I think that it is really sad that this is what our country has come too. That instead of after school programs or churches or community centers, which by the way I didn’t see any of, we know have liquor stores instead that take up space along our streets.

Maybe one of the reasons, and let me restate that again, one of the reasons why we have so much crime is because we do not have any community involvement anymore. Instead of having a safe place to go after school, like an after school program, a church, or a community center, we instead have liquor stores and kids who just wander around with nothing better to do, gradually becoming desensitized to the events they witness every day.

Here is a poem for thought...

Then and Now

There once were preachers on every street corner.
Handing out pamphlets and proclaiming Jesus as Lord.
Now we have drug dealers and prostitutes
Selling addiction in a bag and their bodies to all who can afford.

There once were churches at the center of every city
Where people would gather together as a family to meet.
Now we have bars and liquor stores
Selling addiction in a bottle and putting drunks on the street.

There once were communities who would gather together
As one big family showing concern for one another.
Now the only time you see a community as one
Is when they are drinking their lives away with each other.

--By Benjamin Bishop