Losing to Technology

As usual, I went grocery shopping on Thursday evening, and upon my return home, driving on the interstate bypass, a mini-van passed me, and through the back window I saw a TV screen showing a DVD, and my heart cried.  When did we become a nation that feels obligated to entertain our kids at every turn?  Technology has stolen the time that used to be spent talking, laughing, and interacting while traveling from point A to point B and anywhere in-between.  I truly believe today's young people are severely lacking in the art of conversing and listening, and the information, truth, and history that can be gleaned from older people is not being passed on as in the past.

I remember traveling in cars with my family and friends, and we'd invent silly games to pass the time, such as looking for out-of-state license plates or a certain make and model of car.  As we got older, we'd even flirt wtih the young men in military convoys that traveled the highways.  We'd talk with my grandparents and interact with them.  I remember sitting on my dad's lap and 'driving' the car when I was a very small girl.  Granted, that was not wise of him to allow me to do that, but I survived and had a great time 'driving' and not knowing that his knees and one finger were on the steering wheel!  I vividly remember naming our grandparents' car; we called it "Old Nelly", and it took us, every time they visited us, to an ice cream parlor where we'd sit on stools at a counter and consume ice cream sundaes topped with whipped cream and a cherry.  My sisters and I were aware of the landscape we passed on every trip and would often point out things that we noticed to each other.  Cars were a place to spend time together.

Now when I get in the car with my older grandkids, they have their iPods or their other entertainment devices, including the portable television thingy.  As you can see, I'm not up to speed on these things, and I don't know if I will ever be.  Conversation is becoming a lost art; there's precious little that's being passed from the older generation to the younger one.  How will we save family histories?  How will the younger people learn what life is really like?  Will they be prepared for life?  Will they be ready to face real issues of integrity, truth, and compassion?  We watch violence and call it 'entertainment' while others live with violence daily and don't see anything entertaining about it at all.  Conversing with my soon-to-be-teenage grandson is difficult at best, and when the electronic devices are thrown in the mix, it's virtually impossible. 

I understand that technology is here to stay.  It's part of our daily lives, and it does make things better, much better.  However, I believe it needs to be used wisely and set aside at times for more intimate forms of communication, such as face-to-face in the car, at home sitting in the living room, or while sharing a meal around the dining table.  Let's not become a nation of people which communicate over screens and can't interact with each other face-to-face, which allows for so much more to be commnicated by way of facial expressions and body language.  I prefer that any old time to e-mail, texting, Facebook, or even the telephone.  Let's put technology in its place and not lose out on the important things in life.