Technology is nothing. What’s important is that you have a faith in people, that they’re basically good and smart, and if you give them tools, they’ll do wonderful things with them.

–Steve Jobs

My two granddaughters, Papa and I walked out of IHOP on Sunday morning. 5-year-old Breezy was carrying her iPad, an iPhone and a flip phone.  I thought she looked adorable with her hands filled with technology.  She is a child of the 21^st century.  She is a child of the super technology generation.  I don’t even know how we are going to refer to these little ones when they come of age.  It will be interesting to see how sociologist “name” them when this group gets to the teen and early adult years.

They are really amazing little ones. Breezy received her iPad for Christmas 2015, and only recently got the email address to go along with it.  So now she can FaceTime.  When I was a kid only the Jetson’s could FaceTime.  Breezy doesn’t have a clue about the Jetson’s; all she knows is she has FaceTime and she likes to call me.  The other evening she called while I was playing Hay Day on my tablet.

I could see from the pink walls that she was in her room leaning up against the giant pink stuffed unicorn we bought her for Valentine’s Day.  She looked very comfy.  But, it wasn’t long before she was up taking me on a virtual tour down the hall to show me the new paint-job in the kitchen.  She jumped on her scooter, put the iPad in the basket, facing her, and I watched as she slid smoothly down the hallway.

After she showed off the kitchen walls, she put the iPad back in the basket, facing outward this time, and I saw where we were going as we took the trip on the scooter back down the hallway to her room. We had a brief conversation. Her mom said it was time to take her bath and wash her hair.  She quickly said, “I’ll call you after my bath!”

True to her word, 30 or so minutes later, I got another call from her; this time she was wearing pajamas and had long wet hair. She kept saying, “Is it time to hang up?”  I said, “Yes, now I have to take a shower.”  “Call me after your shower!” she said emphatically.  At the end of one call she said, “I’ll call you in the morning before school if I have time!”  After a series of calls, they stopped.  I’m sure her momma told her it was time for bed.

She calls me at least once every night. Of course I love it.  I know that at five her Gigi may be her favorite person to call.  Soon, I won’t even be on the list of people to call until she’s about 25.  Then I might get back on the list again!

These mini-kids love their technology, but in some ways, as Steve Jobs said, to them it is also “nothing.”  To Breezy, her iPad is no more special than her oversized pink unicorn or her scooter.  It’s one more tool in her life with which she can do wonderful things. That is what is incredibly unique about this particular generation of children.  They are amazing to watch.  It is fascinating to see how they seamlessly integrate technology into their lives.

Do you have super techno mini-kid in your life? Tell me about him or her.  They are pretty awesome, huh?

dmzh