Thanksgiving for the Modern Life

Once in a while I am awestruck with the limitless (as far as the eye can see) horizons of the modern life, that I wonder how we can be so mired in a lack mentality.

I say this first and foremost about myself. I say this about my own all-too-human tendency to compare. To wallow in self-pity. To feel that I do not have enough.

But not having enough? I’s all in my mind.

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I do have enough. Evidence of this truth?

I’m sitting here, with the privilege of having some spare time in the afternoon after lunch.

Privilege is too loaded a word in today’s climate, so I’ll stick with the word blessings.

I can pursue my love for reading and writing. I am able to use the internet to search high and low for all sorts of resources.

I also can furiously type on calmlywriter.com on a laptop that I individually own. (Ownership is a blessing often underrated - I didn’t rent this piece of equipment and I don’t share it with anyone.)

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When I sometimes lament certain ills in the modern life, I must bear in mind not to romanticize the past. E.g. O how nice it would be to live on a farm, have a family trade etc...

History always come with their own peculiar ills.

For all the supposedly idyllic scenes that came from the 1800s and earlier, there were also struggles that the previous generations had to overcome.

We wouldn’t know what they had gone through, simply due to the fact we have only experienced life in the twentieth/twenty-first century.

There may be blind spots, issues we overlook (and think are non-issues) precisely because previous generations had already overcome that struggle and passed the solutions down to us.

And we must move in accordance to the drum beats of Time. We can't go back in time.

The only way is forward.

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I’m truly grateful for their indomitable spirit in overcoming, in conquering. In the midst of all this abundance that has been generated for us, I’ll stand fast in optimism and hope.

Comparing and complaining only makes me ungrateful for the fruits of their labour which has been handed to me.

Not only unthankful, but also unproductive in doing the same for the future generations after me.

I want the same indomitable spirit to overcome and conquer the peculiar struggles of twentieth/twenty-first century, then present those solutions to those after me.

Then, I’m not only giving thanks for the abundance of blessings I receive, but manifesting that thanksgiving in loving action.

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Photo Credits: Alexander Schimmeck, Unsplash