I was about four or five years old when I remember my mother locking the front door.

She said something to my dad about people “out and about” on the road we lived on in the country. Our community was very safe but occasionally we heard about somebody wandering around that sounded creepy. She and dad determined it was time to lock the doors of our house.

Today, many Americans lock their doors even in the daytime. No one wants to be surprised by someone suddenly appearing in the house. If someone comes by our residence they can call ahead and make an appointment or politely knock as respecting, humane people do.

People who desire to enter America must come respectfully and legally. We don’t owe people from other countries entrance into America. People do not have a God granted right to enter our country to be housed, educated and fed. I realize that the work of churches and non-profits is helping and healing the hurts of humanity but America is not a church. We used to be a Christian nation but about half of America no longer wants that label.

People from any country must come with passports, visas and fill out all the required documentation when entering our country. Be prepared to answer questions. It’s a different world and we need to know as much about them as possible.

Almost every day or week brings more and more people to our country who want to immediately have everything that Americans have. That’s not possible. People from Syria and other war torn, ravaged lands cannot come here and expect to immediately have everything that Americans have worked thirty years or more to achieve. America is not responsible for granting to the rest of the world the American dream status as soon as they parade into our nation. Our forefathers came legally and worked hard to achieve the American dream.  It took time.

Most of us are happy to welcome people from the world if they knock on our doors, identify who they are and fill out the required documentation. We don’t want people who hate, resent and want to hurt us. We have to be honest and know that a lot of the world hated America long before President Donald Trump. Securing our borders, asking questions of those who want to enter in order to be safer is the right thing to do.

Thousands have been flooding our country.  It’s only smart to lock the doors. It’s tough on some people. It will be much tougher if we make a mistake that leads to someone entering our country and inflicting carnage on our people. Obviously, we have people already living here who are capable of carrying out something horrendous. Someone can be born and raised here and still hurt people. However, taking some precautions to try to head off any more potential problems is prudent.

May God give our President wisdom and may we as Americans please try to calm down and work together during these difficult times. Furthermore, never enter my house without me opening the door and inviting you.

 -Submitted by Dr. Glenn Mollette