(I’ve written previously about a brilliant member of our church—let’s now call him Larry—who’s one of those outliers way out ahead of the rest of us and therefore deserving of our admiration and respect. Today a different take on Larry’s current predicament—one many older adults may know full well….)
Recently I’ve encountered Larry’s vexation about some of the electronic wizardry that surrounds him. He’s a brilliant scientist/engineer/patent-holder who did early work with neutrinos, designed environmentally friendly Chinese chemical factories and explored the possible cosmology behind some of Scripture’s mysteries, but he’s flummoxed by his cell phone.
This might be the point where I could insert some comments about how “Larry’s ten-year old grandson knows more about this technology than Larry, and isn’t that just so cute?” But I want to go beyond that usual reaction about how old folks need to keep up with what’s happening around them.
Let’s go back to Larry’s embarrassment. This experience bothers him a lot. He thinks less of himself because this seemingly helpful device is so difficult to learn. He worries that he’s lost control of a major element of his lifestyle. That people are looking down on him. He looks around and wonders what’s wrong with him—that he may be losing his mind.
This phenomenon is about more than just how older folks might be challenged by our devices. Not just about technologies’ alleged smartness, but also about their implicit insistence that we spend whatever time and energy is necessary to learn how to use them to their fullest potential.
The self-doubts that hide under Larry’s imagined shame may be close at hand for any of us. In the face of our slightest discomfort about today’s technologies, we may be inadvertently (or secretly) giving away our self-worth—our God-given histories and capabilities—to lifestyle tools whose side effects aren’t always named in the wider society. Thankfully, because those around Larry value him as more than a cellphone user, he’ll get the affirmation and respect he deserves.
I hope the same is true for the rest of us…
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