And what of Tomorrow, who knows?

The past and present wilt — I have filled them, emptied them,And proceed to fill my next fold of the future.

That tiny verse was gifted to us by Walt Whitman from the Leaves of Grass, and as I sat at my computer’s keyboard the other night, I was thinking about what that next ‘fold’ of that future may be, not only for me, but for you and this country.

Have you ever pondered the future?

For sure, a most news worthy item that is circulating on the newspaper pages these days, and most media formats is the streaming process known as another Presidential election; and it appears to me that the American voter seems to change opinions and choices of our leader as often as a tiny baby changes diapers.

This subject matter seems to grow more in epic proportions as we set out to select a President in the arriving year.

The selection of a Leader has a history of many different personalities and spins a tale for each one accompanied with trials and tribulations; successes and failures; and perhaps far too many what ifs.

This political season will be like no other and the problems facing the successful candidate will be most challenging and demanding as the elected individual assumes their seat of power.

And who will be elected to solve these problems is too an unknown at this time; many surprises can happen between now and November.

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What worldly issues will affect our country of tomorrow?

There is plenty of unrest in the world today.  Unsolvable wars are beginning to dot the globe.  Our future seems to have an ongoing chapter filled with many conflicts.

In the Ukraine where the initial support of America and NATO allies have created an obstacle for Russia’s invasion and desire for conquest, what may be the future of the Ukraine and resolution of that conflict?

Will American taxpayers and promised supplies of the war machine continue to support this venture of Ukrainian freedom?

And what of the increasing ‘deficit’ of this country and those escalating dollars; do we merely print more money and be satisfied with that process?  Will spending too much one day ever come to a screeching and spiraling halt?

And if the Ukraine conflict is not enough to grab your attention of tomorrow, what of that conflict in the Mideast and the ongoing efforts of Israel to destroy all remnants of Hamas and that association of others?

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Will our financial pledge there continue as well?

Will there every be a pause to any sort of physical and violent conflict in that part of the world, or will this problem continue to plague the future?

And then on the horizon is yet another festering dilemma with that ownership issue of Taiwan; China for certain is not going away, and I’m wondering how much commitment this country has to Taiwan if China decides to make war like overtures as Russia did?

Is it important to elect a competent President that will have to confront these problems and perhaps cancel a few vacation days if elected to the highest office in the land?

Does anyone have some confidence that any of the above issues will be settled in a diplomatic fashion where all parties are amenable to some common-sense approaches and reduction in the loss of lives, collateral and future harmony is realized?

And what of the world’s economy and well-being of all nations?  Is there a future for ‘getting along’ a little better down this road of many dangerous landmines?

2024 is going to be another interesting year and what lies beyond tomorrow is something unknown today.  Solving problems for the next President will be much more difficult without a common goal of political folk working together.

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Climate change is another fly in the ointment and a can that continues to be kicked down the road.  Should we continue to ‘eat, drink and be merry today’ and let tomorrow take care of itself?

In a nation where the ‘homeless’ problem is growing in many large cities, what can be those results of an immigration policy that ignores the economics and budgets of these cities while offering no legitimate solution to that issue of immigration across an open border?

Abe Lincoln once offered an astute message in regard to the future ~ ‘You cannot escape the responsibility of tomorrow by evading it today’.

Perhaps our political friends should be reminded; consider it done!

2024 will be like no other; the past and present will seep into history and what our future will become is up for grabs.

Pete Waters is a Sharpsburg resident who writes for The Herald-Mail.

This article originally appeared on The Herald-Mail: And what of Tomorrow, who knows?