Tuesday, September 29, 2020

I Wonder What our Ancestors Would Think

 We live in a time of instant gratification.  We can do about anything today with little effort.  We have fancy phones that also entertain with TV, movies and the Internet.  We have cars that can get us anywhere in no time at all.  We have appliances that do absolutely everything - cook, clean, sweep, mix, chop, blend, wash and dry.......... you name it.
We can buy a fancy home pre-made and fill it with furniture with little effort.  We have our grocery stores that sell food and other items from all over the world.  We buy clothes and household items and linens in beautiful colors. 
We have access to EVERYTHING!

Voo-Doo or magic is what some distant ancestors would think!!!!
Remember - there was a time when there were no towns, cities or commercial areas.  Someone had to come through an area and clear the land just to make a hap-hazard road.  Someone had to build that rural village.

I think about how life had to be - and honestly I can't even imagine.
They cleared the way for roads - they cut trees to clear land to build.  They looked for areas with a water source.  They built their  own homes from the trees that were cut.  They made furniture.  
They used wood for heat and cooking.  
They had to create everything!!!!
The hunted and fished.  They grew what they could.  
At some point in time - everyone lived only with what they and the land could provide.

Slowly areas grew and small towns started.  Some items began to get traded, bartered and bought.  Even today, some folks live very far off the beaten track and live off the grid and very simply.
I have tremendous respect for all my ancestors.  If they had not persisted and worked hard - I wouldn't be here today - nor YOU!

Just think about it.  They built their homes with the wood of the land.  They chopped wood for heat and cooking.  They used wash boards and the creek to launder clothes (and body).
They had to raise grain for feed for livestock and to grind for themselves.  
They had to grind their own corn.
The gardened and canned, preserved, smoked and salted whatever they could.

They had to make everything.  Clothes and bedding.  Soap to clean themselves and their laundry.  They cooked over fire.  
They churned butter.  They tapped trees for syrup (sugar).    They spun wool.  They wasted absolutely nothing!!!!!!  They couldn't - everything was needed to survive or for their animals to survive.
Ever heard of fish head soup?  Head cheese?  They ate every part of an animal (including all organs).  They used the hides for warmth, clothing, shoes, etc.
People died - they had to make coffins (if used), dig graves and make markers.

Women and children had to work just as hard as men.  No one was exempt.  Children learned to hunt and fish and trap at an early age.  They learned to help with gardens.  Women did a bunch of of the gardening, the preserving and even dispatching of farm animals (to ready to eat).  Women often took care of everything at the home while men went on long hunts or worked in mines or logged for a living.

Gardens were often terraced on hill/mountain sides - as folks lived in the valleys for protection and water.  Many still do this today in the Appalachia area.
They learned to glean the land - hunting for nuts, berries, mushrooms, animals, fruit......

For entertainment the sang and played instruments.  They read their Bibles.  They grew tobacco and learned to make moonshine!  Heck, everyone in this world has had vices - and these ventures often provided good income!

I just can't imagine what they would think today.  The first settlors were so primitive (in all countries) and had a work ethic that didn't stop.  They couldn't stop or they would die.
They had tremendous faith.  They had to - to set off on such adventures and not know what was ahead.

Today we are soft.  Life is truly easy.  We are spoiled.  Yes, there are still poor people and people who live in areas that are not modernized - but for most of us - we truly want for nothing.

We complain when an item is out of stock at the store.  Oh no, no pumpkin!  Oh no, no TP!  Oh no, no tomatoes!  It seems most people don't take the time to think of an alternative to situations.
If the car breaks down - what will we do?  My goodness, we have so many alternatives and none that those folks could even imagine.  They walked or rode a horse for miles and miles.
I don't want to cook - run to the fast food joint.
I can buy anything - furniture, clothes, pretties, food, medicine, animal feed, etc.

I have had this all on my mind for a few days.  I heard someone belly aching about absolutely everything in their life and how unfair it all was - and the truth be known - they are just flipping lazy and want it all handed to them. (the situation I heard).
Ticks me off to no end.

Self and instant gratification seems to be the way of the world today.  I find this so sad.
I am guilty too.  We all like our luxury and ease of getting things.

I have such great admiration for the first settlers who learned everything the hard way and yet survived.  Life was never easy and the work was difficult and never ending. (could be why no one smiled in pictures!).  Sacrifice was made daily - just to survive.
Thanks to them - we are here today - living a wildly good life!!!!

Thanks for reading.  Just have had these wonderful people on my mind lately.  This is my way of celebrating them!

(pictures are not mine - stock pictures)

32 comments:

  1. So true! We are spoiled.
    The picture of the woman looks so happy with all her canned goods. I have never had to kill a chicken or bunny or deer to eat. That would be hard for me.
    We go for a drive along the Blue Ridge parkway every year, and I see some of those old homesteads in the hollers. What a hard life.

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    1. Yes, the woman does look happy - food to feed her family.
      I know both men I married had grandparents that lived in Appalachia and you could sure see some sights when you got back in there. Hard life indeed.

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  2. We are definitely spoiled these days. I was watching a YouTube video yesterday about a lady who is stockpiling food as she can so if it comes down to it she will be able to use the food to barter for somethings she might need if it gets to bad due to COVID. Bartering was one of those things that they did way back then for sure.

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    1. Barter could definately come in handy during any crisis. I do it already for different stuff.
      Back then they sure did help each other.

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  3. I often feel the same way as you, Cheryl, and I think part of it is youth versus people who have been around for a few decades. For one thing, each generation gets taken care of more so than the last. I'm 71 and am constantly astonished at what people expect their government to do for them. It really is a different mindset from just 50 years ago, and I expect it will be an even more "take care of me" mindset in another 50 years.

    Also, it takes decades of life/work to realize how long it takes to get anywhere. When we are just emerging from our teens, we were taken care of by our parents, and many young adults are looking for the next person to take care of them. By the time you are middle aged or older, you pretty much realize that any thing you own has arrived by hard work. The older I get the less tolerant I am of whining.

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    1. Same here. The older I get - the angrier I get. Some days I just don't like many people!! The world is upside down.

      I agree 50 years ago, no one expected anything - they would have been mortified for someone to suggest they just sit around and accept handouts.
      Life is sure different.

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  4. I have driven from TN to CA several times. The first time I did think of what the wagon trains in the 1800s had to endure, crossing rivers, deserts, and mountains. There was one gas heater in the house I grew up in and no air conditioning. I am thankful for central heat and air conditioning. I have seen many advances in my 75 years. So many things that can be used for good are also used for evil.

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    1. Exactly - not just clearing trees, but the river and mountains and deserts, etc. They sure had fortitude!
      I am thankful for everything as well. Yes, no matter how wonderful something is, someone will find something evil to use it for.

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  5. There is a program called "Alaska, The Last Frontier" where the real family gather, hunt and grow food. Everything has to be made or repaired. They don't waste anything. The book Farmer Boy by Laura Ingalls Wilder shows how they also have to provide everything for themselves. People would not be so wasteful if everything was so hard to come by. When I was younger I did hanker after this sort of life but couldn't do it now. I still live quite simply though in my own way.

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    1. I watch that show. They try to portray the life that the grandfather led when he came here to this country to honor him.
      I loved watching Little House on The Prairie (still do). So many lessons to learn.
      I do my best to stay simple - but I am still spoiled.

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  6. When I was in my twenties the older women in the church were paired with the younger women as prayer partners. A retired missionary who had spent 40 years in Africa chose me. Her prayers opened my eyes so much. She might call one weekday morning and ask me what I was doing. I remember one time telling her that I was doing laundry and she started to pray. She prayed and praised God for all the helpers we have today such as our washing machines and refrigerators and stoves and irons and on and on. Here in our modern age she had raised all her children in a place without running water and electricity so she had so much appreciation for all the conveniences we have today. That memory is as clear as if it happened yesterday and I am still thankful for her and the way she changed my life.

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    1. Isn't that something. So many had to make do with much of nothing. Things were hard. We are truly blessed.
      What a wonderful lesson she taught you - and she did teach - as you remember it.
      I guess we would appreciate a lot more - had we done without any of these things. We were brought up with them and gradually acquired them.

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  7. We are spoiled. We have no idea how to take care of ourselves. IT scares me to think about how unprepared most are for any kind of crisis. Good post.

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    1. Thanks. I know - if IT ever really hits the fan - a lot of folks won't make it! They won't have a clue.

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  8. Life was certainly hard back then - nothing came easy. We would all do well to note that and try and be self-reliant and make what we can from scratch. We certainly all take things for granted.

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    1. Yes mam. I try to make what I can and use up all I can. I like to recycle and rework things. I wish everyone would do more - as it sure would help the resources of the world.

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  9. I cannot tell you how often I think of my grandma and her Maytag wringer washer, hanging clothes out to dry in the summer sun ~ or in the winter on clothesline strung in the basement, the coal furnace in a little room off to the side. And doing dishes in that old white enameled dishpan.

    I am embarrassed that I push a button. And I can imagine what she'd say, "Land sakes!" I learned so much more from her about keeping home than from my own mother and now at 76, I miss her more than ever.

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    1. Memories!!!
      We had a wringer washer when I was a kid, and lined dried unless below zero - then they hung in the house. That washer sure made clothes clean.
      I have often said I would love to have one today - but it was a lot of work.
      Sounds like you had a wonderful grandma!!!I bet you do miss her. So glad you have her in your heart and mind forever!

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    2. We had a wringer washer out in the yard in the 60s until my little sister came along in 1968! All clothes hung on the line and most still did well into the 70s. I have a double clothes line in my spare bedroom-strung about 12 inches below the ceiling. I love it! Our clothes last FOREVER!

      Freezer is full out of the garden. 48 pints of salsa put up for the coming year. 25 half-pints of low sugar blackberry jam are put up from our patch.

      I honestly don't know how well we would do if there were no power as we've not purchased a generator and have no woodstove. Not actually real-definition preppers here.

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    3. It sure does help clothes last and they smell so good. I have an outside line that I use and then use the basement when too cold.
      Good for you on putting food up and back for the winter.
      You really NEED to get a generator of some sort. Something - would help. LOTS's of blankets, quilts and layers of clothes.

      I think we all have areas that need work!!!!!

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  10. I just can not imagine all the hard work my ancestors had to so just to survive.

    God bless.

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    1. I can't either - but they all did it.
      The strength they had.

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  11. Tommy and I were talking on Saturday as we drove the 60 miles from my house to his, how it must have been so hard to make the hilly drive for pioneers. We sort of hit all the other hardships as we drove on rubber tires on a smooth, unfurrowed, and not muddy road and in ac knowing dinner was in a refrigerator or freezer and how it would be so much easier to cook than having to hunt down the food and cook it over a fire. I was so tired when I got home, I undressed in ac and went to sleep on nice, clean sheets before he could get inside. Yes, we have it easy.

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    1. Your post says it all. We have taken so much for granted. My goodness, life was so hard then.
      Thank you

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  12. I was trying to work out a few days ago when the ‘me, me, me’ culture began. The sense of self entitlement for no output ticks me off as well.

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    1. I think it happened slowly. Can't put a finger on it - but probably started with parents being too easy with kids. The "not my kid" ideology.
      I am not sure when it started, but sure wish it hadn't.

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  13. Cheryl thank you for your posts I really enjoy them .I’m 77 now and when my 5 children were at primary school we went on an excursion to a property set up to show the children the pioneering life in Australia. we got out of the bus and the parents were taken up to the home in horse and cart. I will never forget my surprise at how bumpy it was on an unmade track without rubber tyres on the wheels ,such a small thing but such a huge difference.They always looked so good in the movies! Best wishes Marie

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    1. Marie, thank you for your kind words.
      You are so correct - everything seems glamorized in movies. The 'good old days'. Some parts were much better - others not so much.
      It sure would have been a lot of work and stress. People think they have stress today - oh my!
      Glad to have you here.

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  14. Cheryl, you are such a good writer! I always enjoy your posts and the following conversations with your readers. Yup, we have it pretty good now.

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  15. I think about this stuff all the time...well, not all, but it is never very far off. I think if everyone canned their own food, how much less trash there would be. One little dome lid! It would be hard for me to kill animals, but if we had grown up doing it, I guess we would get used to it. I can do fish...have no qualms about filleting them. But that is it.

    But every time we come from Rockville way to home, there are these series of twisty roads in the hills..not very many...but coming out of the last one before we get home, we are up on the hill and look out and see the valley, and I cannot help but wonder what the first settlers thought when they saw this flat land. Plus I think of George Roger's Clark and his men crossing the Wabash River in flood stage to go take Kaskaskia. Those were tough men!

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  16. Also, forgot to say...we come home to a warm or cool house, depending on the season. With the flip of a switch, we can get warm...just think how it used to be to come home to a cold house and have to get a fire started before you could warm up....and simply no way of getting away from the heat. I grew up with no AC and bet you did, too.

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  17. I think of similar situations. I see people who fill their shopping carts with processed foods and wonder if any of them could cook a meal from "ingredients" anymore. I look at the sale flyers and there are no "ingredients" on sale, only premade foods. (Except maybe at holiday time.) I'm glad my kids can cook. Healthier and less expensive.

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