My tweenie-bopper answered her cell phone yesterday with "Yo, Grandma." After I recovered from shock, it got me to thinking how all the manners we learned as children are no longer being used. I see this with my students as well as my own children.
When we were kids we had a home phone, usualy one with a long cord that reached to the closet for privacy, if you were lucky. We were taught how to greet the caller when answering since you never knew who might be on the other end. Today, when someone calls, you look at the screen to identify the caller then decide whether you want to answer or ignore. If we do not recognize the number, we simply do not answer. Where are the manners?
Just the other day, I bought stamps for the first time in probably five years. I honestly don't remember the last time I wrote a letter. And now I think about it, I don't remember ever having my children write/mail a letter. Fortunately, letter writing is still taught in school, however, last year one of my students asked why bother since people email. I didn't have a good answer, since I no longer write letters using the convenience of email. We have gone from polite letters to "just the facts, please" emails. I don't remember the last time I was asked how I was doing or how my family was. Where are the manners?
Do not get me started on texting.
I admit I am just as guilty as the next person. I hit that ignore button (sorry, Mom!), I crank out emails without a thought to who is receiving them, and texting is the best thing to busy mom's next to DVR. So, where are my manners?
Technology is changing our lives so quickly, we can barely keep up. We need to adapt. Answer the phone and ask how the person is doing, thank them at the end for calling (sound familiar?). Start an email asking how the person's family is doing or how their vacation was. If we each take time to use the manners we were taught, others will catch on. Our children will see the polite interaction and begin using it themselves.
Lord knows, in a few years I do not want to be greeted with "Yo, Grandma."
When Hubby and I dated, he said, "I will never call you and say, 'I'm at the peas.'" He's strayed from that promise a time or two. When I was a kid, we had to know what to get at the store OR just make a decision. With cellphones, there's a lot of consulting taking place at the peas. I signed up to follow to keep up with your posts.
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