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Home › Articles › Family › Unplug and Play

Unplug and Play

The Importance of Old-fashioned Fun in a High-tech World

By Mark Stackpole

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The 21st-century family has more lightning-fast technology at its disposal than any other family in history. We lead high-speed, wi-fi lives, all shown in high definition and saved on our TiVo. We are both connected and wireless. E-mail and voicemail ensure we never miss out on important information. Internet chatting and text-messaging allow us to have real-time conversations with people halfway across the world.

But how well are we communicating with the people right down the hall? We are getting very skilled at keeping in touch with the world, but perhaps we are losing touch with the people with whom we eat dinner. Technology is indeed a wonderful thing, and our children are learning to master it at a very early age. But some "old-fashioned" family fun can be just the thing to remind us that there is still a world beyond the virtual one.

In the Moment
"High-tech tools have made it possible for us to have more time with our children," says Maya Talisman Frost from Old Mazatlan, Mexico, a mindfulness trainer whose courses include Giggling Allowed: Mindfulness Games to Play With Your Preschooler. "We can get that important call at home or on the soccer field instead of staying at the office. However, the continual intrusion on our family time means that we grow accustomed to distractions when we are with our kids – and so do they."

Frost defines "mindfulness" as "simply paying attention to the present moment" and believes it is easy for us to do if we can remember to do it. She believes much of our time with family is characterized by distraction, which takes away from the quality time we are able to spend with our children.

Time may be the greatest gift we give our kids, but there is more to giving time than just being in the same room with them. "Unplug whenever possible," says Frost. "This is not as difficult as we like to think it is. The important thing for us to remember is that as parents, we get to call the shots and our kids are watching. If going online is important to you, your children will see that. If you are choosing to connect with others while you are with them, they will certainly pick up on that as well."


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