I lived... and survived with just one!
If you are over 50 years old,as you read this you will say, "Oh yeah. And we got along just fine."
If you are a millennial, you will say, "There is no way I could have lived with just one. I would die."
Well millennial's, we baby boomers and those slightly younger...we did just fine, and are probably better off for having just one.
Here is a picture of our 'just one."
When my home on Liberty Avenue in Clarksburg, West Virginia was built in in 1941, this was the only phone we had. It was mounted on the wall of our kitchen.The only privacy I had was when mom and dad were in the living room, or elsewhere. Everyone used it because it was 'the only one' we had. Cordless and cell phones were decades away. During meals, when the phone rang, I knew better to get up from the table to answer. Mom always said, "Let it ring! If it is important they will call back. Don't they know this is our dinner time? Just rude."
During meals at home, we talked. When we went out to dinner, we talked. When we went on vacation, I twisted my neck every way to see new things..and we talked. At times, we played silly travel games But, mostly we talked - in between naps.
In 1956, we enlarged our only bathroom and added a phone upstairs at the entrance to my parent's bedroom. This is a picture of that phone. I removed it after my mother died in 2014 and hooked it up in our entertainment area in the basement. It still works, a little static, but still works. If you look closely, you can still see the old phone number on the dial.
We started out with one phone in the kitchen. Then we expanded to one upstairs, and eventually a third in the basement, half of which was converted into a 1960-craze called a 'recreation' room. The only portable feature was attaching a longer cord. Yet, we survived.
Thinking back, when we had dinner at home, we talked about our day. We talked about tomorrow. When I took a date to the Ellis or Skyline drive-ins or to Twin Oaks restaurant for pizza, my focus was on her - we talked, laughed,and I tried to sit closer and closer. Come to think of it, we talked less at the drive-in, but we did communicate by working on our non-verbal skills.
All-in-all, I think the communication skills we learned growing up in the 50's and 60's have served us well. Even though our phones had umbilical cords, rotary dials, and offered little to no privacy, they taught us well:
They taught us family meals were for conversation.
The importance of talking through the bad times and sharing the good.
How powerful saying "I'm sorry" can be...when you actually hear it.
Hearing the joy in someone's voice.
I cannot hide or run away from the unpleasantness of life.
Yes, although I am as grateful as the next for all the convenience and security of today's technology, I am equally grateful for having grown up with "just one."
I wonder, "What will the millennial's say 30 years from now?"
And that's the way I see it.
This is Michael saying, "Until next time."