Friday, June 3, 2011

On Modern Luxuries...


My entire life I have lived in Central Wisconsin. Though our winters are amongst the coldest in the States, we also have our sweltering summers to make up for it. Sure, our temps may rarely breech 100 degrees (many other States are warmer), but the high humidity makes the air at times seem almost unbearable. In the past there have been many nights I've spent tossing and turning on a blanketless bed.  Sticky nights, sprawled, where not one limb was allowed to touch another. Just thinking about it brings about a renewed thankfulness for these modern luxuries - air coolant systems.

However, there is also a downside. As a child, the heat kept us out-of-doors where it was less stuffy. Families would sit together in the shade, enjoying a light breeze, or head for the cool waters of Robinson Creek. But today, as the heat rises, people go inside, where gaming systems and big screen T.V.s wait in the cool/dry, indoor air.

Modern conveniences. They've taken over our dish and clothes washing, our hours long buggy rides, and high maintenance wood stoves, et cetera, et cetera. Good things, right? But then again, we no longer need our neighbor's help. There's no community barn raising, or community harvest. Instead of our neighbors being our closest companions, the ones who turn to us, and us to them, well - we may not even know them. Modern convience may have opened a world to us - but it has closed another. A good trade? What do you think?

God's Blessings,

No comments: