Gratitude Frontier Style

I have a lot of friends who are good about posting something they're grateful for every day of November.  I don't really have the social media presence for that. Still, I've been thinking a lot about little things I'm especially thankful for this time of year, and thought it would be nice to list a few. I have a big-time habit of thinking about early settlers and pioneers and the contrast between our experience and theirs. These items stem from those musings.

Image from Google.com

1) Fleece sheets. It was 10 degrees outside last night, and our over-the-garage bedroom is always pretty  chilly. I picture a drafty log cabin on the same sort of night and think of shivering atop a straw-stuffed mattress beneath thin, musty quilts. As I crawl onto our pillow top queen with snugly soft sheets that smell of Downy, I realize I am living the life of a princess.

2) Food that actually tastes good. I made a batch of pumpkin chocolate chip bread yesterday, and eating a piece warm out of the oven, thought, "This probably tastes better than anything an early settler ever ate in their entire lives." Not that I'm some great cook...there's just only so much you can make with cornmeal, lard, and squirrel meat.

 3) Christmas music. I have learned pre-Thanksgiving Christmas music is a very polarizing topic. Some people are intensely devoted to keeping Christmas outside of November, but we're okay with a little preseason spirit around here. Anyway, if settlers wanted to hear music, they had to make it themselves, spy on neighboring cabins, or sponsor an event featuring local talent - which is always a gamble.

4) Hot water heaters. Our boys love baths, and get them even when they're not really dirty. I think about a frontierswoman with a brood of dirt-crusted kids who had to heat water over a fire to bathe her little ones in what soon becomes a tepid tub of filth. And I'm sure the water didn't always get heated...can you imagine wrangling screaming children into a cold bath? A hot shower is a simple pleasure I don't take for granted.

5) Body wash, toothpaste, and deodorant. Because sometimes you want to smooch your man with the confidence you smell better than the livestock.

6) Washers/dryers/microwaves/dishwashers/refrigerators/vacuums, etc. I love them all so much. I wonder if  matronly homesteaders ever fantasized about these sorts of devices as their hands cracked and bled doing laundry in the cold creek. I push my buttons in their honor.

7) Our reliable cars. Olden day folk had to mount (or hitch up) an animal if they wanted to go into town. Or walk. Which wouldn't be so bad if they weren't wearing such terrible footwear. Pieces of leather and raw hide cobbled together offers little in the way of cushion or arch support. You know those things gave crazy blisters! Which leads me to our next item:

8) Comfortable shoes and clothing.  I bet there were some good homespun offerings, but not THAT good. Your lumpy wool sweater may be warm, but it itches and is likely ill-fitting. Give me cotton polyester blends produced by the professionals in Malaysia.

9) TOILET PAPER.

10) Communication technology. I get that technology is a double edged sword, but the ability to send reliable messages and talk face-to-face with family living thousands of miles away is pretty incredible. True, the pony express may have enjoyed a better reputation than the U.S. Postal Service, but before these were well established, correspondence had to be one slow, miserable headache wrought with doubt and uncertainty. Is William a bad letter writer, or was he trampled by buffalo? Meanwhile, I get annoyed when Andrew doesn't text me back.

I could write a long list of why our predecessors were better off than we are, but instead I'll just revel in the incredible comforts and conveniences the 21st century affords. HAPPY THANKSGIVING!