Thanksgiving

As I write this today I am sitting by a fire, with a cup of cider beside me. I am in a house that is warm, and has enough food to feed all who reside in it. Tonight I will have a bed in which I will fall asleep in, and will not have to worry about where I will sleep tomorrow. And yet I always want more. I am not content with what I have. I am not content with the luxuries that I have been given, and take them all for granted. And frankly that is quite pathetic. 

    

I was looking at a photo blog the other day with the title of "He has frost in his bones". I pondered that statement for a while, wondering why that simple sentence stirred me. And then It hit me. I don't have frost in my bones. I know only of the warmth of a fire. I live a life of comfort. Because of today's society, almost all of us live a life of comfort and warmth. We all have the necessities that we need and then some. We think we may know hardship, but in reality our hardships are but a little brisk breeze of cool air in our faces. When we feel that breeze we get scared and bundle up, as if to protect us from the cold. 

When the pilgrims first came to America in 1620, they were met by this strange group of people known as the Native Americans. These people were Sparsely clothed and still living in a mostly neolithic fashion. But they were happy, and they had frost in their bones. They were used to the cold, and they were used to living with only what they needed, and they were content. Whereas their counterparts the pilgrims could barely survive in this new world. These pilgrims were fully clothed, and thought themselves as "civilized" beings. Many of them died due to the bitter cold and of starvation that the Americas brought them. I guess my point here is that they were too used to living comfortably. They did not have frost in their bones, and therefore had trouble surviving. They had to lean on the Native Americans for help and for survival. 

As the years go on, our lives keep getting easier and easier. New innovations, and new ideas are created every day. Yet these things are made for such a small amount of people in this world. If you are reading this right now, you are probably in the 1% of the richest people in this world! You may think that your life is terrible, maybe today the turkey was burnt, or the mashed potatoes just didn't turn out right. But just take a look around you! We live lives in which we take everything for granted. We live in so much comfort that we don't know the feeling of having frost in our bones. So this holiday season I challenge you. Take a step outside. Not literally, though I feel as if you should do that as well, but take a step out of your comfort zone. Because there are so many people out there that live a life that seems so fruitless, and they cannot get out of their current state of life. So I challenge you this holiday season to go and get a little frost on your bones.