I can’t help but notice that a lot of things have been changing over the
years – you too? But then again I know that not everything was better in the
good ol’ days either. What are we to do with that?
In an effort to adjust, to understand and to adapt to my constantly
advancing age threshold....
The book I have just finished reading about a family that emigrated from
Norway to the prairies of northern USA really stirred me. They worked so hard and barely had
the necessities of life. They scraped sod off their own land to fashion into a
shelter; drew their water from a river and had to sieve it to make it drinkable;
shot or trapped or fished for their meat; and were ecstatic when dandelions
appeared in the spring, so starved were they for fresh food. The latter really resonated with me because I
remember my mom saying that her mother would take a washpan outside and place
over an emerging clump of dandelions to act like a hothouse so they’d be edible
as soon as possible.
Then I went shopping at my local
megamart! where we are spoiled for choice every which way! and have huge carts
to easily push our selections around in!!
Women like my grandmother who emigrated from Sweden would not have been
able to conceive of the abundance on offer!
But I ask you, do we really need wasabi ginger potato chips? Or an entire aisle of different flavours of carbonated sugary water? Or umpteen flavours of instant rice? Recently I noticed “Finishing Butter” in the dairy case! Some oil/butter in various flavours prepared for instant use. Really??!! And yogurt varieties... well, you know...
But I ask you, do we really need wasabi ginger potato chips? Or an entire aisle of different flavours of carbonated sugary water? Or umpteen flavours of instant rice? Recently I noticed “Finishing Butter” in the dairy case! Some oil/butter in various flavours prepared for instant use. Really??!! And yogurt varieties... well, you know...
Back to my attempt to understand and adapt ... I enjoy a bag of
flavoured chips and happen to prefer coconut yogurt but I never walk through
the grocery store without feeling vaguely guilty of being part of the
superfluency seen there.
I ponder as I wander down the grocery aisles....
I'm sure it's a great
convenience for many people but in general I tend to feel insulted that
"they" seem to think that “we” can't add a few spices to vary food
flavours so need to buy it ready done (back to "Finishing Butter"!) And it’s all so easy --- directions say just add water and
stir.... pop the container in the microwave.... turn out onto a platter and
serve… Seems to me we are all turning into spoiled children – no, spoiled
adults - who are always grasping for more and more choices with less and less
effort. The marketing of new prepackaged foods and new combinations is absolutely invasive! Have you noticed that plain ol' anything is relegated to the
bottom shelf and there's very little of it?!
Oops – that’s coming pretty close to a grumble. It is my goal to observe
as a student of sociology rather than as a grumpy senior citizen!
We know we are welcome to ask God for our daily bread but I can't help
thinking that in our wealthy First World society we have come to expect a tad more
than that. When we push our heavily laden buggy past the cashier and the total
on the bottom of the till tape makes us cringe, how often do we presumptuously
ask God for a higher income?
I’m not saying I’m going to limit myself to eating dandelions from my
lawn or haul and strain river water for drinking, but what am I to take away
from these reflections, from what I’ve noticed?
Having noticed, I can’t ignore it!
I guess what I'm saying is, at the very least, we must never forget to be
grateful rather than presume entitlement. Not just in comparison to the pioneers of the
past but also in comparison to so many women around our own communities and the
world who even today are barely eeking out the basics of life.
I am reminded not to put confidence in the heavily laden shelves in the
grocery store and the purchasing power in my wallet but in the One who blesses
us. His abundance provides food for the soul as well as the body.
I am reminded to give as generously as possible to those around the
world who are less financially blessed than myself.
And I’m reminded to pray that they would come to know the One who
blesses with food for the soul.
Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment. Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. (1Tim6)
Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. (2Cor 9)
2 comments:
We're definitely becoming an instant-gratification society in so many ways.
Good thoughts. We do live in a society of 'I want' not 'I need', and feeling that way is one of the things that makes me feel "older", longing for a simpler life, yet I do like the ease of everything at the store. "finishing butter"?? really?
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