A few thoughts… On the blessings we enjoy

By Sandy Compton
Reader Columnist

As we approach the new year, we might remember that in spite of the craziness of politics — or maybe because of it — we who live in the United States and most of the “First World” are still the luckiest of generations. I was reminded of this when the power went out at home last week. After four hours of wondering when it would return, it did. Thank you, Northern Lights! We made some big mistakes when building hydroelectric dams and coal-fired power plants, but the benefits are still tremendous. And they are spread across our continent in relatively affordable form. 

My grandparents lived without power for the majority of their lives; including 30-plus years on a hardscrabble farm in Montana. In the 1920s, Grandpa and his neighbors attempted a generating plant in a nearby creek, but, as Grandpa explained, “a spring freshet washed it away.” 

Once the REA strung power to their farmstead, their lives got easier. They never had a refrigerator, relying instead on a root cellar and a “cool cupboard.” They did buy a freezer — a huge Kelvinator that sat on the back porch and died about 10 years after Grandma did. 

We’ve had some fall “freshets” of late — an understatement, for sure — which caused big damage to Pacific Northwest infrastructure. Still, we had the infrastructure in the first place. Some roads washed away with the arrival of the atmospheric river. All of our snow washed away. Ski areas are not open as I write this. But they will be again. (In fact, a bit of snow is falling outside the window right now.) We have the machines to fix the roads, and the crews that run them are already good at it. When a road washes out in Bolivia or parts of Africa, it might be out for a year or more. Much more.

A few hours or even days without power may be inconvenient, but if we put it in perspective of the larger world, our blessings far outweigh the problem. And many of us have backup systems large and small that will help us get through that, if necessary. 

The technology alone is a huge blessing. This morning, as I wondered how far the effects of the outage went and when the power would be on again, my cell phone still worked. A nearby cell tower is running on auxiliary. If you or I fall over for some medical reason while the power’s out, the lights are still on in the emergency room. In many places on the planet, there are no cell towers or emergency rooms, much less ways to keep the lights on and communications available. 

We get whiny when the produce section is short of crimini mushrooms. But we still have produce sections and a transportation network that delivers the criminis. And romaine. And croutons. And hamburger. And bread. And ketchup. And milk. And cheese. And chicken breasts. And broccoli. And beer. (Very important, that.) 

(I once lost an entire newspaper business as a result of mentioning beer in an opinion piece. I was pissed at the time, but it turned out to be a big blessing. Blessings come in many forms.)

In spite of the plethora of violence we witness via our newsfeeds, we still live in one of the safest places and eras in history. No Mongol hordes or Viking raiders are coming to visit. The Third Reich is not gathering families to ship to Auschwitz. No tanks are ranging through our towns and cities. 

In my opinion, $900 billion for “defense” is excessive, especially when much of it is spent on “offense” and we have hungry and homeless people at home. But the net effect is a majority of a population that can sleep well at night; one that doesn’t react to the sound of an approaching helicopter or jet with abject terror. 

Though Donnie Trump seems intent on starting something, no massive wars are surging across the Western Hemisphere (I find it amazing how much damage the poophead-in-chief has done in less than a year in office, and heartening to see resistance rising on both sides of the aisle). Another blessing we still have — one of our greatest, I think  — is the ability to remove poopheads-in-chief via the vote. 

We might be living in the “interesting times” as they say, but where we live and when we are living are still some of the best in the history of the planet.  

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Count your blessings.