Memories Are The Last Thing To Go

Thursday, May 1st, 2014

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I remember back when we were kids (ed. Really?) There were about 5 channels on the television and the only thing you wanted in life was for Lawrence Welk to NOT be on. My dad loved that show and since homes didn’t have a TV in every room we all had to watch what dad wanted to watch. That wish rarely worked out for us kids. Ole Mr. Welk seemed to be on at every waking moment. It was like the 60s version of The Kardashians, It was inescapable. Kids today don’t have a clue. To get away from the TV we went outside. We were outside hours upon hours every day, chasing lightning bugs, making snowmen, climbing trees, playing tag with work trucks, you know, the normal stuff of the time. We were rarely bored.

I remember phones with a crank to get the operators attention and party lines where several households or a whole neighborhood shared a line. You could hear everybody else’s business on those lines. I guess Facebook has taken the place of those lines and people freely volunteer every detail of their lives. Text messaging has made a voice phone call something of a luxury reserved for special occasions or emergencies. Now don’t get me wrong. I love technology. I text and even email sometimes though my typing could use some help from the other eight fingers on my hands.

When was the last time you took the time to relax outside or take a walk as a family, or gasp, talk to your neighbors? Spending time outside, away from our phones and tether of electrons, melts away mental fatigue. If you are able to just let it go your stress levels will drop within minutes. So go spend some time outside and leave the phones in the house. They probably need to be charged anyway. Go out and plant a tree to celebrate a birth, new home, or a memorial. All you have to do is get up and go. Don’t forget to turn off your computer.

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