This weekend we went to Caldwell Zoo, and it was awesome. Meredith, the kids, and I got to spend some time with our friends, the Gabbards. A good time was had by all until we had to leave the zoo. 5 hours just wasn't enough animal time for the kids, but they were out by the time we pulled out of the parking spot. The best animal of the day: the Rhino in the rhino house. He kept staring me down to the point that I started to actually fear for my safety (even though he was behind an ultra strong fence). I thought about what it would feel like if I lived in their habitat in the wild. What would you do if a rhino found you in the middle of nowhere with no one to hear you scream?


So this morning I am going to work, and I notice a hard-wired individual texting while driving at the speed of light. He didn't look up for several minutes despite his weaving in and out of traffic. I couldn't believe what I was seeing (I know what you're thinking - Was it safe for me to be staring at the guy and not paying attention to the road?) It was at that point that I started to ponder my state of "connectivity" to the mainframe. As a society, do we need to be connected at all times? What is the consequence of not having a moment for the "screen saver" to kick in? Can we afford to endure a moment that our cell or blackberry or PDA or some other mobile device(s) could be turned off long enough for dinner?

I am not an advocate for a retreat to the dark ages of no power and no advancement, but there has to be a happy medium. A state of constant connection should be the result of conversation with our family and friends - real life interactions. I think that we lose the intimate connection of relationship if we only converse over text messages and e-mails. We are human beings, and our connections should be to other human beings - not databases.

We were created to interact with the one responsible for creating us. Whatever your belief, my stance is that the creator desires a daily relationship with his creation. I desire that communication with my children, just as my father (and Heavenly Father) desires that from me. I know that the most precious times of my life have been the result of intimate communication with the ones that love me the most. Whether it be in church or the back yard, life is just better when you can tell someone else about it (without typing with your thumbs!)