Technology At Home
Hurd & Honey
A home without technology brings me to my childhood. My father was an engineer, so we always had a computer, but it was seldom used. We had one TV in the living room, and a phone on the wall in the kitchen. I do remember how excited we were when we received a Nintendo game system for Christmas, but most days, we played without technology. Overall, we lived without the gadgets, wifi repeaters, and devices that seem to dominate our homes today.
What has technology taken from us, what has it added?
Hurd & Honey
Peace
Peace is the heartbeat in a home, a home without peace isn't thriving. If I think about this word and our use of technology I'm left with one word, "distraction". The noise of an incoming text, a notification, a phone call, or the blaring television, they're all distractions from one another, and from our own thoughts.
We can't remove all devices and call it realistic, but we can make choices regarding them. For the phones, keep a basket in the pantry to store them away, and pull them out when needed. For the televisions, make them less central in the decor, or hide them in a cabinet. Choose fewer TVs, and place them only in rooms where people gather. If you choose to keep your children from using game systems this may create an obsession for using them. One solution would be to require that all games be played in tandem, never solitary.
Limit the devices and games that promote isolation.
Hurd & Honey
Connection
As parents we have to change our technology habits. It's truly less about rules and more about quiet leadership. If we model connection through conversation, playing games, and choosing to walk through life together, our children will want to join us.
If we focus less on the technology as "evil" and more on our daily choices, we will find ourselves much more connected to one another, and to ourselves.
Hurd & Honey
Protection
Much can be said about protection and technology. There is tangible, physical protection, and emotional/spiritual protection.
By limiting our time and the number of devices that dominate our homes, we're going to find protection as whole to increase.
Refi Guide
Technology is abounding, we all know this, and we find much of it quite useful. Last year Ester received an Echo Dot for her first birthday. We didn't oppose, the idea of being able to ask a device the weather, time, and to play music had great appeal. We use it almost daily. We're not sure if we're placing our home at risk by allowing this type of device, and we haven't considered its safety, perhaps we should?
How safe are our homes when we have handfuls of devices that are connected to the outside world?
Instead of worrying and leading our families on a retreat against technology, let's simply connect with one another, and put our screens away.
Practice makes peace.
*This is a collaborative post.
