Thinking Out Loud, Volume CDLXXV

The cat's in the cradle and the silver spoon. Little boy blue and the man in the moon. When you comin' home Dad? I don't know when, But we'll get together then, Son. You know we'll have a good time then. A text from my daughter about three weeks ago sent my mind into a whirl, and I haven't been able to get away from it. She sent it to her mom and me. She was asking if we used to set aside specific times that we designated as "Family Time" when they were small. Angie and I didn't word our responses exactly alike, but our answers were basically the same: No. We didn't do that. We didn't have to. We lived simpler lives. We ate most of our meals at home. We didn't have computers or cell phones, which meant that when we got off work in the evening, we were off. The kids weren't in sports or dance. Family time just happened. Since that text, I've been giving that topic some thought. What has happened? What has changed? Well, I guess we could start with the things I mentioned above that I said we either didn't yet have or just didn't do. There's not a thing wrong with anything I talked about. It's good for kids to play sports. It's fine to eat out sometime. We've reached the point where we can't function in today's world without a cell phone and computer. No, there's nothing wrong with any of it, but we can make it wrong if we don't control it. Actually, I think there's more to it than just computers, cell phones, etc. It's almost like it's cool to be so busy. We feel like if we're not constantly running here and there, we must be from a lower rung of society. Many of you will recall the words from the Veggie Tales song: I'm busy, busy, dreadfully busy. You've no idea what I have to do. Busy, busy, shockingly busy. Much, much too busy for you. When we're busy, we want to make sure everyone knows just how busy we are. I also believe we're living in a society that's much more affluent than it was a generation ago, making it easier for us to get ourselves and our kids involved in things that steal the quality time we could be spending with our families. We fill up our lives doing good things, but we can get too much of a good thing. There's always some well meaning person wanting us to help them with their charitable causes, and we feel guilty if we say no. We can even allow church activities to take away some of the time our families need so desperately. I've often heard it said that if you need help getting things done, ask a busy person....they're more likely to help. But does it help that busy person? Whatever one generation tolerates, the next generation will embrace and take one step further. If we think our lives are busy now, wait till our kids grow up and see what kind of lives they live. Our kids want to be like us, and they will be. "Like father, like son." I started this article with the chorus to a song by Harry Chapin. I will close with the last chorus from that same song. Notice the difference in the wording of the last chorus: The cats in the cradle and the silver spoon. Little boy blue and the man in the moon. When you comin' home Son? I don't know when, But get together then, Dad. You know we'll have a good time then. Preston