Previous Challenge Entry (Level 1 – Beginner)
Topic: Century or Centuries (02/17/11)
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TITLE: Where Were We a Century Ago? | Previous Challenge Entry
By Lili Richey Willard
02/24/11 -
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I am a history buff. Not so much in memorization of times, places, events, or dates. But I love it from the human perspective. What were the people like? How did they live in different times? Where did they live, who did they love, what did they do for entertainment? I often wonder what they would do if by some miracle they could come to our time for a day. There would be amazement, I am sure, along with fear and feelings of loss. Loss for what they knew.
Ok, so I’ve done just a wee bit of research to see just what stands out in the past century of change in our world. Here are just a few things I have found:
1. At the turn of the century , the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, you could certainly still see horses and buggies and carriages. There were the new things on the block as well, the Horseless Carriage! Which was a blessing in some ways, showing innovation and bringing excitement but it also brought dangers with it, as the noise they made tended to frighten the horses! Not a good thing!
2. Did you know they had mobile phones way back then? Yes! A Kentucky farmer named Nathan Stubblefield actually invented this new toy! It was amazing, and it was HUGE! But there it is, proof that there was phone service prior to TEXTING!
3. Pictures were always black and white, and there were very few smiles! I know this firsthand because I have a lot of family pictures from that time period. The ladies were mostly frowning and wore long sleeved dresses with very high collars. That’s probably why they were frowning!
And the men were very serious and stern looking. You would not feel inclined to interrupt their day with those looks!
4. A church in West Virgina celebrated and hosted the first Mother’s Day!
5. And, last but not least, Christianity was the number one faith across the world, at 34% of the world’s population. Sadly, today we are at 33%; Islam as at 33% and the most rapidly growing faith right now. And a statistic that kind of surprised me is that the world’s Jewish population, for the faith, not the ethnicity, is at a low .22% worldwide.
So, you can see how things have the world haschanged when you compare these facts to the facts of today. Our world today is consumed with the newest, most colorful, and fastest of automobiles. Our pictures are flooded with color, and with smiling, excited faces. Our clothes are not drab and dull anymore, and we as Christians need to stand up in this century and state who we are in Jesus’ name!
He is to be praised, just as much in this century as in the last one. More, if we would do what He calls us to do…go out into the world and make disciples. We are called to be His children and to share Him and His word with all the world. We can make a difference in this century. Let’s do it!
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Be super careful when stating "firsts", etc... because you may find another source later that contradicts it. I've found so many sources that seemed to be "reliable" and later proved to have inaccurate info. Even tombstones can be inaccurate!
One way to protect yourself is just to state the fact in quotes, exactly how you found it, citing the source. Then, you can't be accused of interpreting something wrong.
Hope this makes sense. I LOVE finding the golden nuggets of history. I've just learned to make sure that what I find isn't "fools" gold before I write it!:)