Pineridge Blog

I hope you all had a great Christmas Day and still are enjoying the Season of Christmas.

The Gospel of Luke says that “the angels went away into heaven,” after announcing Jesus birth to the shepherds, but our greatest hope at Christmas is that the baby remained. In this time when all of the activities and celebrations are over we can take time to reflect on the gift of the Christ child to our world and our lives. To trust that God remains with us, even though we never stay long in one place. The hope of Christmas is that the Risen Christ remains on the journey with us, wherever it leads.

One day follows another and we often don’t realize how much things have changed or how far along the way we have come. As the year turns to 2020 it is a time for looking back and looking forward. Someone in the congregation shared with me some statistics for 1919, one hundred years ago.

• The average life expectancy for men was 47 years.
• Fuel for cars was sold in drug stores only.
• Only 14 percent of the homes had a bathtub.
• Only 8 percent of the homes had a telephone.
• The maximum speed limit in most cities was 10 mph.
• The tallest structure in the world was the Eiffel Tower .
• The average US wage in 1919 was 22 cents per hour.
• The average US worker made between $200 and $400 per year.
• A competent accountant could expect to earn $2,000 per year.
• A dentist earned $2,500 per year.
• A veterinarian between $1,500 and 4,000 per year.
• And, a mechanical engineer about $5,000 per year.
• More than 95 percent of all births took place at home
• Ninety percent of all Doctors had NO COLLEGE EDUCATION! Instead, they attended so-called medical schools, many of which were condemned in the press and the government as "substandard.”

I will share the rest of it next week. In the mean time Happy New Year!