Post-Modern Life: Are We Cheating Ourselves?

As a homemaker in post-modern America, I have it easy compared to my own mother. She had it easy compared to her mother, and so forth. Each new generation of domestic engineers has been blessed with tools that make our job a little bit easier, a little bit faster, a little more convenient. But lately I find myself wondering, does all that really make it any better?

My grandmother washed dishes by hand. I load them in and out of my dishwasher, usually twice a day. Grandma washed clothes by hand and hung them to dry. I load them first into my washer, then my dryer. My mother sat down and wrote letters on paper in her own handwriting to keep in touch with distant loved ones. I drop emails with digital pictures attached. Mom cooked simple meals with basic ingredients. I cook by browning meat and adding the contents of a box labeled "helper". When I needed to learn about something, I asked someone to teach me or did research at the library. My kids flip on the Internet, type in what they need and bam! there it is in a few seconds. Our post-modern methods are quicker and easier, but are they really better?

I think many of today's homemakers are missing out on something vital. There is therapeutic value in doing things the old-fashioned way. I believe the rhythm of hand dish washing is calming. Involving the children is more fun when there is sudsy water involved. Washing clothes by hand is tiring, but the exercise is beneficial, physically and emotionally. Cooking from scratch is more work, but what a warm and wonderful labor of love! There is also a certain grounding we get from simple activities like handwriting a letter or reading a book. We learn more when we research things for ourselves than if all the answers and reasoning are provided for us. These old ways of doing things make life more real and tangible than it has become today.

Perhaps more importantly, we have become so dependant on our modern conveniences, that we are slowly losing the ability to function without them. It's with this in mind and a hunger for simplicity in my heart that I am trying to turn back the hands of time in our home.

I have already begun cooking more from scratch and building a pantry of staples. We've dropped microwave popcorn and taken to popping it on the stove from plain seeds. It's so delicious in its pure form! I want to start drying some of our clothes on a drying rack outside and hand washing dishes a few times a week with Aspen. It's a small start, but I feel good about it.

What things do you enjoy doing the old-fashioned way?