Travel on the "Me First" Highway

Life itself is the ultimate trip!! It seems of late most Americans think they are on the trip all alone, that it is all about oneself.
I am 64 years old and in my lifetime I have seen community and nation go from an attitude of concern about what is best for the greater good to "me first and forget the rest"!! It disturbs me to no end.
I grew up where trust in your neighbor was tantamount. Doors were left open. Children moved freely from play in a neighbor's yard to swinging on grapevines in the woods. You greeted each other as you moved freely through the neighborhood. Meals were carried to the elderly, sick, or bereaved, their houses cleaned, chores and yard work done, and there was no expectation of remuneration or reciprocation. Children and elderly were "looked after" by family, friends, and neighbors. People respected and cared for others and their property. There was a sense of community and its greater good was a priority.
Today, we imprison ourselves behind locked doors and security systems, sometimes with bars on our own windows. We often don't know our neighbor by name; they are just faces we pass on the street. Our children don't know the joy of riding their bikes around the block, damming a creek in the woods, or playing a pick up game of baseball on the vacant lot. We are afraid of walking the streets of our own neighborhood. Shopping at the mall is an exercise in self defense and due vigilance. We expect and look for the worst in those we meet. Everyone is looking out for number one!
The newspaper today is full of articles about the anger and frustration being expressed across our country in town hall meetings. It carries pictures of individuals outside these meetings expressing "their" right to bear arms and those within expressing "their" right to free speech without respect for anyone else and the issues of safety and fairness. Does this anger and frustration have root in the "me first" attitude? When does "my" right become an infringement on the safety/security and well being of the greater community?
We do not live in a vacuum. We do not travel alone. Every act we do, every word we speak impacts others. I have it better than others; others have it better than I. None of us has achieved our position (good or bad) alone and/or without the actions of others. Yes, we all make our choices/decisions and must accept responsibility for our own actions, but let's be honest. We don't often consider the impact of our choices on others, especially those removed from our inner circle of aquaintance. We don't acknowledge that some are better equipped to make good decisions than others and we all fail at accepting responsibility. It is just easier to place the blame at someone else's feet! It is easier to judge from a position of superiority than to bend to a position of assistance.
What would happen if we were willing to place more trust in each other? What would happen if we put neighbor's needs in front of our own? What would happen if we greeted each other, even strangers, with genuine respect instead of suspicion? What would happen if we were willing to make the road a little easier for the person behind us? What would happen if we became as concerned for the comfort and safety of others on the road as we are about getting where we are going?
I just bet, the world would become a better place.
For now, still the Capetown Seamtress