Life without Electricity
Written by Jen Sunday, 21 September 2008 22:57
Blog
Do children today understand real-life science?
Can they apply book knowledge to reality? Do they grasp how the discoveries of Franklin and Edison have affected their everyday lives?
My kids can tell you about Tesla and Watts, explain circuitry and name the components of the atom. They learned this is in school, you know. That fun little "all about electricity" kit Uncle Jeff provided years ago also gave them a good head start. Thanks, Jeff, by the way.
Now ask them if the automatic garage door works without electricity. How about the ice maker? What is a power surge? Hmmm. We-and the school system- still have a little work to do.
During our recent three-day power outage due to a wind storm, we experienced a little slice of life in the 1800s. No modern conveniences, no electronic gadgets. We found ourselves spending more time outdoors, connecting with neighbors, and going to bed with the fading daylight. The luminous, full moon shone through open windows and all but the crickets were quiet in our sleepy community.
It was kinda fun for two days.
Then we tired of dirty socks. Frosted Shredded Wheat with water three times a day is not so tasty either. My kids missed Popsicles and the Internet. I am addicted to hot coffee.
Clearly we're not made from Pioneer House stock.
The real education, however, was not how dependent we are on power, but how woefully unprepared we were for such inconvenience. Sure, we had bottled water available, but half of it had leaked or evaporated from the jugs. Oh yeah, we'd trust that to drink! And that portable battery-powered TV had no working batteries thanks to a teen boy and a football game that just couldn't be missed (stashed under the bed and left on).
But hey, we had flashlights and lots of ‘em! Oops, what happened to the little pieces that make them work? We did have plenty of candles and a battery-powered camping lantern, however, so we didn't run into too many walls.
Our cousins on the Texas coast are coping with a big mess, much more than the little inconvenience and clean-up we've endured.
I bet their kids understand about real-life science.
