So Is This What It's Like to Be a White American...

...who feels like they're "losing" their place in society?  ...who perceives their way of life declining and/or disappearing?

I just might be able to relate to that sentiment, a least little bit, now.

From what I understand, the sentiment is about a sense of being forgotten.  Their way of life being ignored, or marginalized.  Almost like their existence did not make any impact, DID NOT MATTER.  

My family and I visited my grade school friend's parents house recently.  Retirement party for his mom.

Good times seeing old friends.  And by "old", I mean "ooooollllllllllddddd."

These old friends are people I've known quite a while.  One of them I've known since the 1st grade (when Michael Jordan was winning his first championship).  We've all kind of lived our lives, gone our separate ways but it's nice to keep in touch with this part of my circle. 

It didn't really hit me how much my friends' parents house meant to my youth until I saw a modern-ish two-story multi-unit complex built next to it.

The multi-unit complex looks like a skyscraper compared to the rest of the formerly single family homes in the block.

"Pretty soon this house is going to be the Up house" said one of the party attendees when I reacted out loud to some of the fellow party attendees.

The "Up House" is a reference to the 2009 3-D animated children's movie titled "Up" in which in an old man widower resists attempts by developers to sell his house, which by proxy is the container of all of his cherished memories with his deceased wife.  As it appears that the widower is about to give up the land on which his house stands to developers, the audience sees that this will not be the case.  Turns out that the widower had spent some time setting up a lot balloons all over his house, enough to the point that these balloons lift the house from its foundations and he is able to "fly" with his house (and all his cherished memories) in tact.

Somewhat of an apt metaphor because there are quite a few cherished memories I have of being in my friends' house.

• Weekdays after school, I remember playing some intense games of backyard basketball
• Where I would just sit in his room and find new music and movies
• Site for Manny Pacquiao fights
• Parties where I was fully immersed with the friends, family, and fooooooood
• That first summer out of high school --- this was the most central place where we could all just chill in that period of what looked like absolute freedom --- not in school, minimal responsibilities.  An emblem of possibility as well as stability.

Hopefully, quite a few more left.