Truthfully, the world of technology has been somewhat baffling to me. I am well past mid-age and have seen the full gamut of the evolution of technology in my life time. The technology age has literally evolved right in front of my eyes, going from party-line phone service to cell phones that are mini-computers. I entered and graduated from college clueless about personal computers, to speak nothing of email and texting. My world has changed and it has required me to change with it as it relates to technology.

The changes that have occurred as a result of the technology revolution have been both positive and negative. Society has moved from a pace that was slower and more deliberate and required one to wait for things to one that renders instant results. As a young girl, if one wanted to get a message to someone, a letter or phone call was the method of choice. Usually a letter was sent since not everyone had a phone. Even then, you had to wait for a reply if you sent a letter. Now, instant messaging and email allows communication to anyone anywhere in the world in just a matter of minutes. Though I love sending and receiving letters in the mail, it is slowly becoming a distant memory. Most of the mail I receive now arrives in the form of bills and/or advertisements. Even that is rapidly becoming obsolete. I was speaking with a lady just yesterday who wanted to send me information. I asked if she needed my mailing address fully expecting to give her my postal information. She immediately asked for my email address in order to send out the information. Her reply was a reminder of how much times have changed in regards to sending and receiving most anything.

Not long ago I had a conversation with my son-in-law in regards to the technological changes. He has only known life with cell phones, computers and game devices. He was surprised as I told him of my first black and white television, party lines, rotary phones, and typewriters. He was somewhat surprised to realize that I went to college with a word processor that revealed one line of type written information at a time. I thought I had something wonderful. I can remember learning to type on a manual typewriter and thinking I had died and gone to Heaven when I got an electric one. The only computer was data punch driven and took up the space of an entire room. I went on to tell him that all of the technology we have today, has appeared on the scene since I graduated from college in 1977.

There have been other changes as well and I am not certain that they are as positive as one might think. As a Speech and Language Pathologist I have noticed a serious decline in our young people’s ability to fully grasp the concept of face to face conversation, an understanding of body language/facial expressions or tone of voice. So much of the communication that occurs between people is happening via instant messaging, email or texting even if they are in the same room together. My personal opinion and judgement as I have worked with children and youth with language disorders, is that they have not learned conflict resolution or problem solving that is learned through face to face interactions. Because they can’t hear the tone of one’s voice or see their facial expressions or body language, often there is a loss of meaning in the conversations. The words can be misunderstood or the meaning misconstrued. Though we get instant gratification from the texting and often an immediate answer that we need, the trade-off can be less than satisfying. Another change that has come from texting is the language they are using. They are experts in an abbreviated language I don’t fully understand, with terms such as LOL (laughing out loud), TTYL (talk to you later) and much more. With this new form of communication, we appear to be in desperate need of a new dictionary, designed specifically for people like me! I am learning more about the abbreviated language due to my children and grandchildren. They have been instrumental in helping me, though not without a little teasing.

I remember when I got my first computer and there was so much to learn, my children asked me, “Mom, didn’t you learn anything about computers in school?” That is when I smiled sweetly and informed them that we didn’t have computers in school. The looks of horror on their faces made me feel like a dinosaur or at least a true relic of the past. They couldn’t believe that my reports were hand-written or typed on a typewriter using carbon paper. Though the computer has certainly made their lives easier, I have often longed for them to experience black smudges from carbon or the joy of erasable typewriter paper. Oh the memories those days bring.

It took me awhile to adapt to the changing times and fall in line with the use of technological devices. My first cell phone was a pre-paid one that had few, if any bells and whistles. I knew I should get a smart phone, but was not in favor of a technological devise that might be more intelligent than I am. I caved. I had too. I had to show my children and grandchildren that I was hip, and up to the latest times. I now have a lap-top computer, a personal printer and a smart phone. I am proud to say that I can use a fax-machine, send email, and can attach a document to the email. I am able to take pictures and share them on social media sights. I have learned to send text messages, access social media and YouTube!

I was feeling really confident about my abilities with technology until my three year old grandson took my smart phone, accessed and manipulated programs I didn’t know were available. Oh well, I am learning! However, as long as I live, face to face conversation and snail mail with continue to survive, no matter what my grandchildren think! LOL!