The point of the past couple of blogs is that with determination and effort, a goal may be made. Look at all the foods we have in our grocery stores now as opposed to 20 years ago. I go into a main stream grocery and buy mirin, and can get rice paper wrappers. Now, I still can’t get Italian tuna in olive oil but can find so many things here in the hinterlands that were only available in specialty stores in big cities, bringing them back from foreign countries, or much later ordering online.
Sometimes people who have great ideas must wait for them to be adopted, and that can take, five, ten, 25 or more years. Even though we may not be around when the idea hits, it’s still a worthwhile idea. I know that instant gratification is what most Americans want and take for granted. Sometimes, when there’s not a business at stake, an idea will hit and it can give the original thought-provoker gratification that an idea has taken flight and hopefully is in good hands.
Think suffragettes, the Freedom Riders, our nation’s founders signing a treasonable Constitution against British rule. Think about the shirtwaist factory fire in 1911 where 145 people died, as they were locked in to their sewing floor to keep them from taking breaks, and that led to unions and safety legislation for workers. People died to gain these rights and never saw them come to light.
Today I marvel at what my husband’s parents have done for their sons. The boys grew up on a dairy farm and their parents were determined that they go to college. They were the only two to take over the farm. Now my father-in-law raises beef cattle because a dairy was too much for one man. One son majored in physics and writes software that runs banks and trading systems. The other is an agricultural banker. They both did their parents proud but not on the ranch.
I admire people who put time and love and care into anything they do, whether it’s sailing or owning a business, teaching children or, most important, raising them. They should know that the world doesn’t revolve around them and that something good they do may reap rewards in time. After all, life is not a video game. Cheers, Dee
Cooking with Dee 