The Olden Days

I posted on my Facebook page a conversation that Isaac and I had in the van on the way to school. During the conversation he made reference to the olden days. I thought he was talking about hundreds of years ago, but unfortunately he was referring to the days when I was in school. Man, talk about making someone feel old!
As I was thinking about this conversation and reminiscing about my childhood and all the toys we didn't have back then...cell phones, tablet computers, computers (for my early childhood), video games, Facebook, Twitter...I wondered how I ever had any fun. How in the world did we know what was going on in the world? Then I watched the Daytona 500 last night an a driver had a special compartment made in his car so he could carry his iphone with him. Really...just in case he needs to take a call at 200 mph! Luckily for him there was a 2 hour jet fuel fire delay so he was tweeting and sending pictures all over. What broke the camel's back was the article headline I saw that read, "Our devices now own us." How true that is.
Are we better connected now then we were in the olden days? Have these devices of convenience lent us more free time, or have the invaded our lives in such a way they are consuming more time then saving? Does our need to check Facebook, Twitter, email, Pinterest take away from time we could be spending with family? I think so. Leave your cell phone at home once when you go to work or out shopping as Tracy and I both did last week. Talk about a strange feeling. We almost turned around to get them, but instead enjoyed a fairly quiet day with the boys. Quiet because we didn't have to answer to our cell phones. What would happen if you couldn't check any social media sights from 5pm to the time the kids go to bed? Do you find yourself in a better relationship with your smart device then family and friends?
I think I have been guilty of that, and I've decided to wean myself from the cell phone a social media a little bit. I'm not stopping them altogether, but I'm going to be more aware of the time I have with family and not let me need to constantly check in on the latest news take my attention away from my kids and wife. Pretty soon I'll be wishing Isaac would ask me questions about the olden days, and I don't want to wish I'd spent more time with them instead of on social media sites. Will you reevaluate where your time and energy is spent with me?