I made an amazing observation this weekend at our annual family reunion. It was more than a simple reunion; we added a celebration of my daddy’s 90th birthday.

Especially exciting for me was that my daughter, Jessica, and her son and my grandson, Cam, made the trip from Syracuse, New York.

They joined my sibling’s children and momma’s and daddy’s regular-sized house had 16 kinfolks eating, laughing, playing, and sleeping on sofas, air mattresses, plain floors, and whatever corner they could find. But, actually, who slept?

You might think that Donna Sue and I could have invited some over to our house in Bainbridge to sleep and we could have. No one would have accepted. They loved the chaos at the home place and figured sleep was not the most important thing to do. Plus, the only way to not be talked about is to be there!     

What was amazing should not have been so surprising. It was something that I had done as a child, but I didn’t know that these kinds of spontaneity still held true. We think times have changed and they have, but not in every way.

We worry about our children and grandchildren these days. They seem to be so engrossed in their technology. Instead of talking on the phone, they text. They might even text each other if they are seated right next to each other. It’s weird and we worry that we are getting so connected to “things” like cell phones, IPads, and laptops that we are becoming dis-connected to each other.

What will our children and grandchildren be like when they get our age? Will we cease to talk one of these days? We might communicate by simply thinking something and allow our devices to transport our thoughts. Not good!

My grandson has an IPad and cell phone. So does his cousins. What would it be like when they got together for just a few days? Would they be so bored in the “sticks” that family fun becomes a relic from the past?

We landed, so to speak, at the home place Friday afternoon and Cam reunited with his cousins Anysten and Tinley. They don’t get to see each other too often so it took a little time to get comfortable. The question was “Will they have fun?” They all had their devices, but would they just show each other their cell phones and IPads? Not much fun in that for an old farm boy like me.

It didn’t take long and the amazing thing that I saw was that not one bit of technology, or at least modern technology, was involved in their uncontrolled laughter and fun.

In the front yard, the grass was green and had been cut. The yard looked great and, before long, one of them pointed to a simple spigot. The way we say that is “spi-kit,” but it is a spigot for water and is on top of a 3 feet long water pipe.

One of the three turned on the spigot and water flowed. That’s the only technology they needed: flowing water. And for the next hour, they ran through the flowing water, splashed it all over each other, and simply got soaking wet! That’s all. They got soaking wet from the top of their head to the soles of their feet. Their clothes stuck to their bodies and they were having so much fun.

My point. It’s a natural thing for kids to play and, even without, all their devices, they can find a way. It was amazing to see kids being kids!