Talking family

This article from the NewYork Times is written by a mother who is hurt her children won't friend her on facebook. The author receives mixed feedback, I was really surprised by the number of parents who have joined facebook purely to keep tabs on their kids. I can't help thinking this is another example of technology eating away at our relationships and fundamental social skills. Surely if you have a good relationship with your children and frequent conversations...facebook should be the least of parents worry?

The comments got me thinking about family life: a core aspect of life which is being explored at Participle. I often think about how tough it must be to be a parent and a friend at the same time. Trust is developed over years and a cherished part of any relationship...parents shouldn't be spying on thier kids online?!

However, my thoughts trail to the positive when I discover a reader is friends with his 87 year old grandfather on facebook...

Another interesting one "Not on Call", the author, Lisa Belkin, discussing one of the many disconcerting parts of raising a teen, is that your home phone doesn’t ring. In my teens, the phone ringing and mum getting to chat to the caller for the four seconds it took me to fly downstairs was important. It was an insight into my social circle.

Boys in their twenty-somethings are the last generation who will have to call a house phone to talk to a girl, coping with the fear that her dad may answer...when my dad was younger the phone box across from their house rang and the 'picker-upper' chapped their front door. Back then, everyone in the street could monitor your social life.

With all this in mind I am alarmed at the autors revelation:

"My children talk with their fingers."

A great blog overall!