Onward American has officially become two years old. It feels absurd that this much time has passed since I began this blog. It feels as though it has been longer than two years in some ways, but it also feels as though it has been less than that in other aspects.
When considering the passage of time, I often think about how much changes over the course of a lifetime. There are many things that have already changed throughout my life, even though I am still young.
The Changes of a Lifetime
Some of the changes I have seen through my life are how DVDs were popular, until they suddenly seemed to have disappeared, and how cell phones went from not necessarily being in everyone’s hands to becoming smartphones that are in nearly everyone’s pockets. I remember when telephone booths were still practically used, until the ubiquity of smartphones rendered them obsolete. I also remember a time before iPhones existed, which may not seem impressive, since iPhones are only 16 years old, but a time before iPhones will eventually be unfathomable to the majority of people.
Even more has changed in my parents’ time: microwaves were not common and indoor plumbing was newly installed in one of parents’ homes right here in the United States, therefore their outhouse was only recently decommissioned. Televisions progressed from the days of tuning into channels and static interference to the current time when you simply press a button to receive a clear image.
Much more drastic changes and global events have occurred during my grandparents’ lives; the new invention of the television developed from black and white, to color, to smart TVs. Radios were much more widespread than TVs, landlines were replaced by smartphones, washtubs and wringers were replaced by electric washing and drying machines, and the process of handwashing dishes was replaced by dishwashers. Sliced bread and vacuum cleaners were new. The land where they grew up was still being developed for farming and the small family farms were drowned out by major corporations. The Great Depression came and went and World War Two, the highest casualty war in history, took place; my grandparents even saw the entirety of the Cold War, which lasted for more than four decades.
Our modern conveniences and easy way of life are still brand new. Let us not forget about the blood, sweat, and tears that many have poured into developing our conveniences, and let us not forget to do our part in bettering society.
What is something that you have witnessed change or develop through your life?
Onward American 