Virtual Community

It’s a fact of modern life that our communication is getting more technology dependent by the day. First we replaced mail with email. Then the telephone was eclipsed by the cell phone. Wireless broadband has become as everyday as…what was that old thing called?...oh, right…dial-up. Talking is being replaced by texting. And the next big thing appears to be virtual communities, as Facebook is finally succeeding at what MySpace, Xanga, and others tried to do. Now not only do we have an electronic way to communicate with each other, we have a built-in mechanism for sharing and catching up on what our friends are doing without even needing to know what questions to ask.

It’s also a fact of life that in winter, weather can interfere with the best laid plans. ThirdPlace was cancelled last week because of the slippery roads, and today was looking pretty iffy for a while too. Many students were sad to miss last week, and a lot of us feel like we haven’t seen each other in a very long time. The great thing, however, is that we have still communicated with each other on a nearly daily basis. I can’t even count the number of phone calls, text messages, chats, wall posts, and other interactions I’ve had with students in the past week.

Don’t get me wrong; face to face communication is best. I did also send ten old-fashioned letters this week via the postal service because nothing says “I’m thinking of you” like a physical piece of mail. But in general I see modern technology as a blessing, not a curse. As a 21st century youth leader, I would be lost without it.

I know it has its risks like everything else and boundaries need to be set. But thank you as parents for allowing your teens to have access to a variety of communication media. It makes a huge difference to all of us on staff as we try to stay involved in our students’ lives.

Now has anyone seen a Buy N Large employee around here? I need to find my way to the Lido deck… ;)