Throw Away Society

Image courtesy of Vichaya Kiatying-Angsulee/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Mary Tullis Kunde has been credited with saying, "The Dust Bowl overlaid on the Great Depression taught us to 'use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without'" (Warner, C., 1992, Treasury of Women's Quotations, p. 225, Englewood Cliffs NJ: Prentice Hall). It has always fascinated me to hear my father's stories of living through the "Dust Bowl" and the "Great Depression." Its lessons seemed to stay with him, as we certainly lived by Kunde's motto. I always thought we didn't have enough money, and I did not find out until decades later that my family was considered by the community to "be in high cotton." I even had to ask the person who told me what "being in high cotton" meant. I was told it meant "well off" in a tone that implied it also might also mean "rich." I almost laughed.

I think life has come full circle-----currently we seem to be living according to the motto "use it until the next model comes out and trade it in or throw it away." New appliances and high tech wonders seem to be built, not to last, but to function correctly for less than a third of the time their counterparts did in days gone by. Now, it seems, appearances are more important that substance. We are considered to "be on a level with our peers" if we have the latest laptop, computer, tablet, high definition TV, cell phone, X-Box, coffee maker, espresso maker, blender, washer and dryer, refrigerator, etc. Our nation is considering defaulting on the money we owe....and this is coming from a nation built on honesty and integrity, or so we were taught. Even the tradition of marriage seems to be moving from "till death do us part" mentality to a "throw it away for a new model" mentality. Personally, I am at peace with having been one of those "thrown away" wives----I was thrown into a much richer and more meaningful life and existence that forced me to grow spiritually. The marriage I was stuck in was actually killing me; I didn't realize it until my body started screaming it at me. I would not have survived a "till death do us part" marriage.

But, back to the focus of today's blog. Having come full circle from "save everything" to "waste and throw away everything" our society seems to be on the brink of being forced to move back to my father's values. In another fifty years people may be saying the combination of the "Economic Insecurity Era" and the "Great Folly of Congress" taught us to "use it up, wear it out, make it do, or do without" (Kunde, in Warner, C., 1992, Treasury of Women's Quotations, p. 225, Englewood Cliffs NJ: Prentice Hall). Maybe it is time we got back to basics and learned to appreciate what we have, to use it gratefully, and to do without when conditions merit doing so. Maybe we are meant to confront and endure what is coming so we can grow spiritually as a nation. Wouldn't it be nice to live in a country that actually means "In God We Trust" rather than just printing those words on increasingly worthless paper.

Enough of this morning's rant. Please comment and share your thoughts about how time may be repeating itself. May God bless and keep you.