November - 30 Days of Thanksgiving: Day 28 - Stuff

I'm thankful for all my stuff.  I am not a big one for fancy modern equipment and conveniences.  It's been my experience that with the effort of acquiring and maintaining the stuff, and having places to keep all the stuff, guarding and providing for the stuff's operation, and upgrading or replacing the stuff periodically, it's hardly worth having the stuff at all!

I tend to look for things that don't require batteries or even electricity if I can find them.  I like hand operated tools and I prefer time tested methods.  If I can use something simple and durable that costs me nothing but the original purchase price, then there's simply less opportunity for things to go wrong.

I prefer older ways of doing things, too.  Remember "cooking"?  Not buying hamburger helper and heating it at home, but actually making noodles with flour, cooking meat and making my own sauce to go on it. If I had it my way I'd grow the ingredients.  Cutting out the middle man and any extra steps gives me a greater amount of control over quality and cost.  It's sometimes and adjustment, but once that adjustment is made it's really not an inconvenience, and it's just a better and more efficient way, to my way of thinking.

That's all fine and good to a point, but some conveniences are so inextricably ingrained in my life that I don't even think about it or consider doing it any differently, let alone give thanks for it like I should.  For instance: the bathroom.  I have hot water, an indoor toilet, a sink and a toothbrush.  Can you imagine having to draw water and heat it on a stove, pour it into a basin and wash up?   How about toilet paper?  NOT an optional item.  I vaguely remember the days of outhouses,  and I can tell you from my very tiny bit of experience with them that there's plenty of reason to be thankful for a bathroom.

If you ever feel like you've fallen on hard times or that life's dealt you a bum hand, stop and think of all the people who don't even have fresh water to drink or can't get inside out of the elements to sleep at night.  They're everywhere.

I'm thankful for a soft bed and running water.  I'm happy about my tiny refrigerator even if it sometimes freezes my lettuce or melts my juice concentrate.  I'm thankful for a sink full of dirty dishes because it says three wonderful things: I have a sink, I have dishes, and they are dirty because I have had food.  I thank God for all I have.

(photo credit)