"I'll be with you in a minute"

 

Does this scene look familiar?

• “The first cell phone hit the market in 1973. Some 40 years later, more than half the U.S. adult population was carrying a cell phone in their purses or pockets. Today (2019), that number is closer to 95 percent, with 77 percent of Americans owning a smartphone.” (Ryan, 2019)

Picture if you will, a quiet mountain home with a creek, trees, abandoned dam, road for riding bikes, bamboo forest to climb through, stories read or told, and togetherness. Just right for exploring. This is Grandma's house. Many of the grand kids would come and run and play in the great outdoors. Those days are long since gone. Sure the grand kids are older but what they have now are phones. Family get-togethers have become share what you found online moments. I used to feel left out because my phone was not as advanced as the others but I too have succumbed to the "new and improved". Welcome Moto Power, now I’m right there with them.

• “A mere 20 years ago, children used to play outside all day, riding bikes, playing sports and building forts. Masters of imaginary games, children of the past created their own form of play that didn't require costly equipment or parental supervision. Children of the past moved... a lot, and their sensory world was nature based and simple. In the past, family time was often spent doing chores, and children had expectations to meet on a daily basis. The dining room table was a central place where families came together to eat and talk about their day,... Today's families are different. Technology's impact on the 21st century family is fracturing its very foundation, and causing a disintegration of core values that long ago were the fabric that held families together.” (Rowan, 2017)
  

• “Pew Research Center survey in 2018 showed that 95% of teens now report they have a smartphone or access to one and 45% of teens now say they are online on a near-constant basis. This is an increase from the 73% of teens who said this in 2014-2015.” (Anderson, 2020)
  

A year ago, I let my phone occupy my thoughts outside while my nephew played with trucks beside me. I surfaced to find him not there. Calling his name got no results. Panic set in and the search was widened. No luck. Then our dog was spotted over at the neighbors, which is rare, and the thought came that my nephew might have tagged along. All ended well and everyone was back where they belonged but think of what I missed because of the phone.

This story ended well but there are times when it does not: https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2018/08/15/child-drownings-linked-phone-distraction-among-parents-pools/998836002/

Some say this is not a problem, it's how we stay connected, learn things, and laugh. The phone is a library, photo album, school, game source, calendar, “what are we going to have for dinner?,” and “what is my dream house going to look like?” But what if we are connecting to the wrong thing? Is it an addiction just like drugs or alcohol, do you need it? Is it the first thing you look at in the morning? Have your children been ignored because you need to scroll just a little farther?, what if you missed something? These are just a few questions to ask yourself.

According to The Lake House Recovery Center here are some other things to look for:

• Neglecting areas of life that do not include technology
• Difficulty completing daily living tasks
• Losing track of time when emailing, surfing the web, reading Facebook posts, or tweeting
• Isolation from friends and family
• Experiencing euphoria with technology use (Admin.,2019)

If you said yes or even maybe? To any of these questions you might want to consider this challenge; put down your phone and reconnect with what matters. Challenge yourself to go a half hour or dare I say an hour without looking at your phone.