Your Ancestors Would Be Proud

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s to the collected knowledge of humanity at my fingertips anytime I want. I can talk to someone in China if I wanted to on the magic box I keep in my pocket. I can play games on a variety of screens in my house, which I do quite a lot to pass the time. I can also read any of millions of books, and if I want to, I can listen to someone read them to me.</p><p id="2356">If my ancestors saw me, they probably wouldn’t think I was weak. They would see these things, these marvels that technology has brought us, and be happy. I don’t have to toil in the fields; I can earn my keep as a writer. I have the luxury of resting my body and mind as part of my employment.</p><p id="27a6">I can eat whatever I want and I have access to more types of foods and seasonings than people had even 20 years ago. When I store my food, it can be kept for long periods without risk of spoiling, and even if it does, it’s easy to replace.</p><p id="a7bb">I have the ability to travel the world on a whim. For a long time, traveling more than a few miles from home was difficult; now, I do it regularly and with ease.</p><p id="4af6">Medicine has made many illnesses that used to be killers into minor inconveniences. Through a global effort, we literally eradicated smallpox from the world, a disease that killed millions. Science has come so far that we created an effective vaccine for an illness that had been around for a bit more than a year at the time.</p><p id="eb59">I can eat like a noble and read like a scholar. I can rest my body and care for my illnesses. I can manage my bipolar disorder, which would have likely landed me in deplorable conditions a hundred years ago if it didn’t kill me first. Not only that, but I can function in society with it.</p><p id="999e">For me, some of my biggest concerns are how to deal with stress and what to eat for dinner tonight. I don’t worry about dying of any number of illnesses that are easily treatable today, nor do I worry about breaking my body in the fields. My house is big and my bed is comfortable.</p><p id="d5f5">I also have the luxury of remembering that not everyone has the privilege of enjoying these things. As such, I use my skills to work for good causes. I have enough money that I can give to charity and loan money to friends.</p><p id="d75c">Would my ancestors think of me as weak? I don’t think so. I think they would marvel at the many things that have enabled me to thrive. Thanks to their hard work, I can live a life of relative luxury. And, as I put in my work to better the world for the next generation, I think they would be pro

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ud.</p><p id="cdac">If you liked this, please subscribe to my publication, Thing a Day. I publish something every day on a variety of topics, so you never know what you’re going to see!</p><div id="64b6" class="link-block"> <a href="https://medium.com/thing-a-day"> <div> <div> <h2>Thing a Day</h2> <div><h3>In which I write one thing each day.</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/1*eDMwsybTKAuurmHy6-tfoA.png)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><p id="ad5c">Here are some other things I’ve written:</p><div id="be7a" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/the-magic-box-in-my-pocket-b29597fcedeb"> <div> <div> <h2>The Magic Box in My Pocket</h2> <div><h3>An odd look at my phone.</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*XlWY9VabkBTflPrp)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><div id="044d" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/why-good-deeds-dont-have-to-be-big-to-be-impactful-5aa89a1b253a"> <div> <div> <h2>Why Good Deeds Don’t Have to be Big to be Impactful</h2> <div><h3>Or: Why I think everyone should strive to make the world just a little bit better.</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*vQbTpRoxHko8zNfK)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div><div id="2fd1" class="link-block"> <a href="https://readmedium.com/historybounding-a-blast-from-the-sartorial-past-630be81da48c"> <div> <div> <h2>Historybounding: A Blast from the (Sartorial) Past</h2> <div><h3>Vintage style with modern values.</h3></div> <div><p>medium.com</p></div> </div> <div> <div style="background-image: url(https://miro.readmedium.com/v2/resize:fit:320/0*kDHIU2C44exaYxp8)"></div> </div> </div> </a> </div></article></body>

The future is now.

There is a trope among certain circles that our ancestors would be ashamed of what we’ve become as a culture. The general notion is that we’ve become “soft” as people and our past relatives would think of us as weak compared to them, who toiled in the fields and worked hard jobs all day every day.

Honestly, I think that’s a bad take.

I work 40 hours and have two days of rest every week. I get several weeks of time off every year during which I can do whatever I want and still get paid for my leisure. My job is physically undemanding — I sit in a comfortable chair all day, and I’m able to move about, eat, and use the bathroom whenever I want.

If I want to, I can hop in my big metal box and propel myself significant distances over a few minutes to go to a store where I can buy fresh produce from halfway around the world. There is also all manner of pre-packaged foods, both shelf-stable and cooled or frozen, which I have immediate access to whenever I want.

There is a huge selection of spices, teas, and coffee from around the world, available inexpensively and in bulk. Trade routes were once built to connect the world to acquire these things that we can buy in jars whenever we want. Wars were fought and people died over these things that we now consider pantry staples.

I have access to nutritious food, including meat and vegetables, whenever I want. I have a box that keeps things cool or frozen, and my oven and stove can be set to whatever temperature I want with the turn of a knob. The water I drink is clean and safe, and I can buy filters to clean it further. My toilet is inside. My home is kept warm in the winter and cool in the summer and is lit by electric lights all year round.

I keep pets not because they are useful to keep vermin away or manage my livestock, but because I think they’re cute. I feed these pets special food because I want to take care of them. I handle their poop and feed them treats because they are like members of my family, and caring for them is important to me.

I have access to the collected knowledge of humanity at my fingertips anytime I want. I can talk to someone in China if I wanted to on the magic box I keep in my pocket. I can play games on a variety of screens in my house, which I do quite a lot to pass the time. I can also read any of millions of books, and if I want to, I can listen to someone read them to me.

If my ancestors saw me, they probably wouldn’t think I was weak. They would see these things, these marvels that technology has brought us, and be happy. I don’t have to toil in the fields; I can earn my keep as a writer. I have the luxury of resting my body and mind as part of my employment.

I can eat whatever I want and I have access to more types of foods and seasonings than people had even 20 years ago. When I store my food, it can be kept for long periods without risk of spoiling, and even if it does, it’s easy to replace.

I have the ability to travel the world on a whim. For a long time, traveling more than a few miles from home was difficult; now, I do it regularly and with ease.

Medicine has made many illnesses that used to be killers into minor inconveniences. Through a global effort, we literally eradicated smallpox from the world, a disease that killed millions. Science has come so far that we created an effective vaccine for an illness that had been around for a bit more than a year at the time.

I can eat like a noble and read like a scholar. I can rest my body and care for my illnesses. I can manage my bipolar disorder, which would have likely landed me in deplorable conditions a hundred years ago if it didn’t kill me first. Not only that, but I can function in society with it.

For me, some of my biggest concerns are how to deal with stress and what to eat for dinner tonight. I don’t worry about dying of any number of illnesses that are easily treatable today, nor do I worry about breaking my body in the fields. My house is big and my bed is comfortable.

I also have the luxury of remembering that not everyone has the privilege of enjoying these things. As such, I use my skills to work for good causes. I have enough money that I can give to charity and loan money to friends.

Would my ancestors think of me as weak? I don’t think so. I think they would marvel at the many things that have enabled me to thrive. Thanks to their hard work, I can live a life of relative luxury. And, as I put in my work to better the world for the next generation, I think they would be proud.

If you liked this, please subscribe to my publication, Thing a Day. I publish something every day on a variety of topics, so you never know what you’re going to see!

Here are some other things I’ve written: