Once again, my family has come through just in time for another blog posting. This past weekend, we were able to celebrate my grandfather’s 97th birthday. It was a momentous occasion- more than 40 family members there to celebrate with him, including his 90 year old sister! My grandparents have 9 children, most of which are within driving distance to visit.
About a week before the event, I received a message from my aunt who lives many states away wondering if I might be able to help them FaceTime with my grandfather during the party. Their 12 year old grandson had taught them how to do it, and they thought since I worked in computers, I could be the one to help them figure it out on the other end. They could then have their whole crew of 8 grandkids there to celebrate alongside the real festivities.
So the time comes for us to connect- and success! We put the computer in front of grandpa, and the Colorado crew begins to give him their well-wishes, one by one popping up in front of the camera. All the while, grandpa (and his sister) looks perplexingly at the screen. We encourage him to wave and talk to them, which is met with scoffs and quizzical glances, followed by some half-hearted waves. (as seen in the photo below).

We asked grandpa quite a few times if he realized what was going on and he still thinks he was just watching a pre-recorded video of everyone saying hello. For a man who has seen so many inventions in his life, from not even having electricity to being able to video chat with someone 1,000 miles away, that’s quite a jump for someone to make.
However, the point that we are missing is that this all happened because of a 12 year old boy. I certainly would not have thought to set this up. I’m in the generation that emails to communicate. But this is how a 12 year old communicates with everyone. His friends, family. It just comes naturally. There are no technology boundaries for him. It would have never occurred to him that video chatting with a 97 year old might be out of the question.
These kids that are born as digital natives are going to be the ones who shape our future. Technology opens up a world of opportunities to them. This is the generation that is finally realizing technology is a tool they need for survival. So what is it, that when we are 97, these kids will have developed that we will no longer be able to understand or comprehend could actually be happening? Is there a point where we will shut ourselves off to the possibility of technological advances? Longing for days of simpler cell phones, having to do math in our heads instead of having it easily calculated for us on a computer, or going to a physical store to purchase our music in hopes that the new album has not sold out. I can honestly say, I hope not. Most technology is developed to fill a need. As times change, needs change. I gladly commit my technological future into the hands of the digital natives and cannot wait to see what comes of it.
Mindy Hart
At-Large Representative