The things we take for granted...

I can't imagine life without the things we have now. Most would not know what to do without a cell phone. I, on the other hand, have been without my own phone for about four months and have been fine with it. I've also done without a dish washer. I do want one...badly. There are other things that we have that I just can't see ourselves going without. Here is my list:

A washing machine and a dryer
Cars
Computers
TVs/DVDs
Electricity (light bulbs)
Alarm clocks
Printers/printing press

I thought of this as I turned the tv off. I had just finished watching The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. Once I turned the tv off, the living room was black. I couldn't see a thing. My eyes hadn't adjusted to the darkness so rather than sit and wait for the acclimation to occur, I felt around the room like a blind person. Once I found a light, I realized just how long we would be without it. I also realized how far light can go. I simply walked down the hallway to put something on the ironing board and realized I didn't need to feel my way to that point; I simply walked at midnight. The sun wasn't out and yet I was able to move around freely without injuring myself.

We would be lost without the modern conveniences we have now. Yes, we would learn to adapt. If none of these things were invented, we wouldn't miss it. We'd still use candles to get from room to room. We'd still wash our clothes by hand and hang them on lines. We would sew our clothes by hand. We would write letters to keep in touch with people. We'd be using a horse and carriage. Life would be filled with just as many tasks, but with more time to do them.

It just seems as though light is at the heart of it all. If we hadn't discovered fire, then discovered candles and then discovered light bulbs, life wouldn't be the same. Light give us freedom and takes our fears away. It helps us to extend our day and not live our lives on time that isn't given to us. We can go from room to room within our house, at midnight, without injuring ourselves. What a blessing that is. My toes and knees are thanking mankind for finding those amazing things.