Nov
30
2018
Time To Look Up
Posted in Daily Living 4 Comments
I heard the crash on the floor.
The young mom and I were on the same aisle.
We were both buying diapers.
She was buying them for her toddler; I was buying them for a pregnancy center.
Oh, daddy is not going to like it if I break another phone, she said to her little girl.
It was apparent from the comment and her toddler looking at the ground, the phone had fallen.
Uh oh, the toddler said over and over.
The little girl was straining to see the phone that had dropped on the floor.
I bent down to pick it up for her.
She inspected the phone and did not see any cracks.
What would we do without our Otter Box? I asked her.
I know, but somehow she still breaks them, she said, looking in the direction of her little girl.
Something quite loud was playing on the phone.
What did you turn on? The mother asked her little one.
The little girl was giggling and reaching out both of her arms to take the phone back.
She always finds things that she wants to watch, the mom admitted.
The mother handed the phone back to the little girl.
She was quiet as she stared at the screen.
Enjoy your day, I said to her.
Neither looked up.
I could hear her in the next aisle and the next.
The loud music was the give away.
I never heard a sound from the little girl.
Until the mother must have taken the phone away.
There were protests.
There were tears.
There was cajoling.
There was silence and then the loud music again.
I found myself thinking about the young mother, not in judgment, just in curiosity.
I wondered how many devices the little girl already knows how to operate.
I wondered if I could even keep up with that toddler.
I had to learn technology as I went along; thankfully my children have helped me.
However, young children today are immersed in technology.
It is all around them.
It is not introducing them to technology that is the issue.
It is monitoring the use of technology in their daily lives that proves challenging.
I thought of the shopping trips I took with my children.
Sometimes I had all five of them with me.
Sometimes, I only had the younger ones.
Technology was not an option for entertainment back then.
I am actually glad about that.
The older children were given items to get off the shelf for me.
One of the older ones always wanted to push the shopping cart.
The young one, in the front seat of the cart, had toys and books to keep them busy.
I remember them “reading” the books to me as we went up and down each aisle.
We would play word games.
We would talk as we went along.
I would always give them some item to hold and tell them how much they were helping me.
I liked to see them using their imagination.
What amount of imagination is a child using when the device is doing everything for them?
Technology makes them more of a bystander than a participant.
What is a young child missing when he or she is looking down at a screen?
Technology will come upon them soon enough.
Technology has wonderful uses.
However, is there a window of time when hand held devices should not be an option?
Should the child learn and explore by looking up and around instead of down?
Everyone was amazed and gave praise to God. They were filled with awe and said, “We have seen remarkable things today. (Luke 5:26)
Wonder and amazement is all around us.
God has made such beauty for us to behold.
Children must be taught to wonder; to seek it and enjoy it.
Children must be encouraged to look around them to see God’s majesty.
The window is wide open when a child is young.
The groundwork is being set.
Children are being taught to wonder.
Children are being taught to be amazed.
I thought of all this as it pertains to adults as well.
How much are we missing by always looking down at our phones?
How distracted are we in the moment when we are constantly accessible?
Are we able to be fully present with the person right in front of us?
The enemy loves to keep us distracted.
When we are distracted, we fail to see the wonder all around us.
It is there.
There is so much beauty to enjoy.
I lift up my eyes to the hills – where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the Maker of heaven and earth. (Psalm 121: 1,2)
Let is lift our eyes to see the wonder all around us.
Let us teach our children to look up and around to see all the beauty God has made.
There is such a small window of time to encourage them to be amazed.
We, adults, can learn a thing or two as well.
You have such a good point! Nothing on the I-pads, etc. can equal what God has created! We need to teach our children to really look at the world; it’s where my creative inspiration has always been. Parents need to really restrict the time spent on the I-pads and encourage more nature time.
Sue,
The enemy loves distractions.
God loves stillness.
Gina
Couldn’t agree more! This was very encouraging to read. Thank you, Gina!
Michelle, we often have to be countercultural with our children to encourage wonder and amazement.
Gina