No more complaining for me

“I really want to have internet at home”, I told my husband one day. He replied quickly, “I think we should wait until we move and then I promise you can have your internet”. I pouted at his response. Why can’t I have internet, and why can’t I have it now?! There are days when it is so inconvenient for me to pack a laptop and drive to the library or to a near by fast food restaurant that offers free wireless internet. I can find a million reasons to justify us spending close to a thousand dollars a year on the luxury of having internet at home, however I can also find a million ways of spending that money elsewhere.

You are probably shocked at the cost, so let me explain. Six weeks before the wedding, I told my then fiancé that while I am on a mission trip for four weeks he can decide where we would live. I was certain that we would stay in the same town that my university that I recently graduated from was located. However, my fiancé had a different kind of surprise for me, when I returned from a mission trip.

“So have you picked out our apartment? What color walls do we have? And does the apartment come with a washer and a dryer?” I questioned my husband as soon as he picked me up from the airport.

After taking a few guesses on the location of our apartment I finally gave up.

“We are going to live in my parents’ vacation home that’s located in the mountains. We would not have to pay for rent, just utilities” said my sweet Daniel.

Considering that I didn’t have a job yet, not paying rent each month sounded like a great deal. We would live in a nice cozy home surrounded by beautiful nature for free. Living in the mountains also meant that the closest grocery store was 17 minutes away and the closest mall was one hour away. No cable, no cell phone signal and no internet would be a new way of life for me.

The first year living without the convenience of a nearby grocery store and luxury of technology was not so bad. We enjoyed spending time with each other instead of checking out facebook for hours. And not having TV on all the time allowed us to really concentrate on our school work. We also did not miss the bills that come with convenience and luxury.

It has now been almost 3 years of us living in the mountains. There are days that I wish we had the convenience of internet; however satellite service is our only option. This also means that by the time we pay for equipment, installation and monthly service our yearly bill would top at almost one thousand dollars. During the days that I find myself complaining about having to drive to the library for free internet use, I check and adjust my attitude. Realizing how fortunate we are not to have the burden of monthly mortgage payment or rent makes me happy. My in-laws generosity of opening their home to us is one of many blessings that I should be thankful for every day.

We would love to hear what are you thankful for?