Back to “Civilization” and now we have no power at home!
Pop—then Crack! I’d been lying in bed listening to the “fireworks” of an intense thunderstorm overhead. Sure enough—our electrical power vanished. Our home was now a statistic: one of 48,000+ customers now powerless. I rolled over with one eye open to read my alarm clock, but it was blank.
It’s amazing how an act of God such as thunderstorms and no electrical power can transform my life and cause me to re-arrange and re-prioritize your day.
A normal day might look like this:
Fill the coffee pot with water and coffee, then plug it in; flip on TV to catch latest news and weather; pop bread in toaster; fill washer with water and soap for dirty laundry; turn on computer to check my e-mails; shower and wash hair (no water if connected to a well; dress by candlelight; push button to raise garage door (no juice, so hit override and raise door manually); traffic lights off, so treat as a 4-way stop. Until the power goes out, I really didn’t realize how connected and dependent we are on this source of energy.
Life is much more complicated today than days gone by. Is this really progress? Gone are the simpler days. I am so dependent on merely flipping a switch and expect instant gratification without even thinking of the behind the scenes networking.
Our lack of power reminded me of “Little House on the Prairie” television series. Their household was run by kerosene lamps and candles. Bedtime reading was done as a family, and then they would all retire to bed. Several generations under the same roof helping, teaching one another moral and biblical values, and life skills. The children lived and learned the true meaning of family.
Maybe the past generations had the right idea, and “progress” along the way only made life more complicated and less enjoyable or fulfilling.
