while we are in this mode...

...of being thankful, I've thought of something else we should all be grateful about. It occurs in all our lives, and we never give it a thought. You use it many times every day, and the idea of not having it at your fingertips (literally) rarely crosses anyone's mind.

I recently read - in several hours, as it is a very small book- Bill Bryson's "Africa Diary". He has a marvelous sense of humor, can find amusement in things that are not even remotely funny, and writes about things that happen in his life. Stuff we can all relate to - mishaps and incidents of every day living that happen, when you might as well laugh as cry. I've read a couple of other books of his, and recently requested the  newest one from the library.

The "African Diary" is several years old, but new to me. He was invited to go on a trip by the CARE organization, that provides resources for struggling economies. I suspect that anyone who actually sees the poverty in third world countries is changed forever, always aware of the bounty that is part and parcel of our American lifestyle. The story that struck me was one about putting a water pump in a remote village. The women would, before the pump, have to walk miles each day to a river, that was their only source of water for drinking and cooking. Not always safe to drink, but their only option. Getting up before dawn to go for the day's supply before they would start their chores. Such a distance they had to walk, that they could only carry one five gallon jerry can per trip. (A gallon weighs about eight pounds - so that's at least thirty-five pounds to haul for miles.)

When the pumps were installed in wells that were dug in other places, the villagers were thankful, but when it broke down, they just went back to trekking to the water source every day. Did not have a sense of ownership, and were not interested in trying to repair a piece of equipment that they did not 'own'. So CARE decided they had to develop some plan that would have the people in the village feel a vested interest in the well/pump. If the community was to be the 'owner' of the pump, the people who lived there would be willing to do the maintenance, and repair when needed. You guessed it: they formed a committee! And charge a small fee (probably pennies in an economy that is so far below the US 'poverty level' it is invisible), and use the funds to pay for parts when needed. The community feels a sense of power over their circumstances, as well as a sense of ownership and therefore a desire to keep the pump in good working order. Even so, I imagine a bit of bickering over who was there first...

So: thankful for fresh water, thankful for electricity, thankful for detergent, thankful for washers and dryers. And more clothes than I really need, but thankful for the ability to put them in the washer, dryer, and hang them up in the closet, clean and ready to wear. Plus, even though, when the reporter called about the burglarizing, I knew it was all just 'stuff', and could be immediately thankful no one was hurt.