Giving thanks

This year, my family had 16 people for Thanksgiving, ranging in age from 8 to 90 years old. The oldest attendee, my great-great-aunt, is the most vibrant old lady you'll ever meet (my little sister described her as "cheerful for her age"). Every week, she "looks in on the old folks", bringing seniors - sometimes 30 years her junior - home-baked goodies, gossip and company. She's quite the character!

After dinner, she said something that stuck with me. She said she was thankful for electric lights because when she was a girl, growing up in a very rural area, they would have to scrub the chimneys on the kerosene lanterns every day before they were refilled.

That blew me away! Do we ever think to be grateful for electricity, let alone dishwashers, microwave ovens, the internet, washing machines, cell phones, refrigerators and all the other conveniences of modern daily life?

It's remarkable to think that not only did our relatives and ancestors live without these conveniences in the not-so-distant past, but that millions of people still live without them today. One of my favorite blogs is written by Maggie Doyne, who runs a children's home for orphans in Nepal. She often writes about the struggles she faces just to provide a safe, healthy home for her children in an area with high poverty and illiteracy rates, limited medical care and little contact with the outside world.

In a society where Blackberries are practically glued to our bodies at all times and we feel isolated if we can't check Facebook or Gmail for a day (I'm definitely guilty of this as well!), I think it's important to remember to appreciate what we have - from running water to the internet - especially in the upcoming holiday season when consumerism is king.