Well it's been a long time since I've had the pleasure of spending time with my grandaughter. She is such a joy to be with, and, although I know many, many of my friends have grandchildren of their own, and feel pretty much the same way as I, when it comes to spending time with them, I can't help but feel she is the best of all of them, as I am sure they feel the same about theirs.
It is quite an interesting observation when you watch and observe, over time, a child develop and grow their own unique personalities, how they change from a baby face to a face that really distinguishes them from all others, and how they mature as they learn new things, especially things that you have trouble understanding and learning.
Recently, I was at a Christmas party the building was hosting for all of the tenants. One of the families that came down from the 35th floor was a mother and her three young ones. Two girls and a boy. The oldest daughter, about ten, was dressed so elegant for a young lady her age. Not overly flamboyant, but just enough dressiness to attend a party. But the really interesting thing about this family was the young boy. He was about three. He was being held in his mothers arms as she straddled him on her hip, and in his hands he was holding his mothers smart phone.
I watched with interest as he cradled it, while prodding its face with his tiny little fingers. He tapped and swiped, searched, and swiped some more, and then all of a sudden he was watching a video of Sponge Bob, on HULU. Simply Amazing! Three years old and already he had mastered a device that when relating to me, my own grandson posted on his Facebook page, "Is it illegal to give a Smart Phone, to a dumb person" as he humorously poked fun of me, when I first got my Blackberry, and was having trouble using it.
So it was with no surprise that when my Grandaughter, seven years old, came over and took control of our Nintendo Wii game. I observed the mastery of knowledge that the youth of today possess. She first created a unique caricature of me, she called it a Mii, and to her own amusement, and without any effort, she started to unlock games and find new, that I didn't even know were there. And you know what? While she did this, she took the time to explain the inner workings of the Wii game and how it worked. It was like attending a seminar for the Wii, being led by a seven year old, as lectured to two people in their sixties. SIMPLY AMAZING, AND A LOT OF FUN TOO!
Then to top it off, she showed us how we could get Netflix videos on the thing, how we could get the weather reports and news, and a host of other features, we didn't even know existed. While she was talking, she started one of the bowling games. She told us we needed "Numchucks" for certain games, like tennis, and when showing us the features on the bowling game, she showed us how to put spin on the ball, angle the shots, and stylize our approach when delivering the ball for the shot. SEVEN YEARS OLD!!!
WHAT NEXT? Well how about lessons on how to use your new HTC Smart Phone? Yep, she then started to show us how to do different things on that too. I think the difference between adults using all of these new technologies, and children, is that they are not afraid to fail, while we are afraid of screwing something up, or breaking something. The one thing that they have come to learn, it that all you have to do is shut it off, and reboot........ Wouldn't it be wonderful if the mistakes you made in your life were that simple, I.E. all you have to do is shut down and reboot, and everything would go back to the way it was before?
Pretty soon it was time to depart, time to regroup her with her mom until we meet again the next time. I look forward to seeing what surprises she'll bring with her? What new things will she have learned? I simply cannot wait. This child has a bright future ahead of her. I just hope old grandpa sticks around long enough to see it all unfold........... I love you MAC!
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