Paradigm Shift

Now I know I'm an "old" mom. Having children at the age of 40 means I am farther from their age than other moms I know.

And I know times have been changing quickly, more quickly than in the span of time when I was the age of my kidlets.

All this leads me to a recent experience with Jake that proves to me that the world is changing quicker than I expect. We were at the local natural history museum, at an exhibit about bats. The museum people brought out a display with live bats. Jake was right in the front, fascinated with the critters. He was one of about 50 kids, plus a double row of parents behind them. As the display wrapped up, Jake ran back to me. "Mommy! Give me the phone!" I had it in my pocket, but I was confused. "Why do you need the phone? Who do you want to call?"

Now here it comes... the paradigm shift....

"Mommy, I don't want to call anyone. I need the phone to take pictures of the bats!"

OK, so while I KNOW my phone has a camera, I think of it primarily as a communication device. This generation I have borne sees phones and communication in a whole new way.

This is the same child who navigates the computer as well as I do, and if I tell him to "right-click" knows exactly what I mean.

But hey, keeping me young, right?