I waited in the TV room for my turn on the phone. The smell of burnt popcorn floated through the air and the sounds of a run-away ping pong ball and a vending machine dispensing stale bagels were the background noises I heard while I passed the time. Soon the phone was available. I slid into the booth, inserted my dime in the change slot and dialed zero.
"Operator," I said, "I'd like to make a collect call.""What number please?"
"201-475-41...," I replied.
The phone began to ring on the other end of the line and after a brief pause I heard my mother say hello. "Oh good," I thought, "they're home."
"Do you accept the charges?" The answer was yes.
Last night I was laying in bed listening to music and my cell phone rang. "Mom, my car won't start."
"Call AAA and then call me back," I advised.
While I waited for news of the outcome of the service call, I texted my daughter a few times.
About forty minutes later the phone rang again. "They got the car going. It was the battery."
"Oh good."
After we hung up we texted back and forth a few more times with some additional thoughts. I'm sure I had more phone interactions with my daughter in one hour than I had had with my parents in an entire year when I was in college. Times have changed (boy, do I sound old)!
As I was settling back in, I began to think about how there have been times when I have approached my heavenly Father in a "collect call" fashion -- calling infrequently and only when I had a problem. Lately I interact with God much more in a "cell phone" way. I am in consistent communication with Him, sharing the good news as well as the troubling news. I tell Him when I am pleased to be His child and when I am frustrated with Him. I thank Him for his goodness and ask Him for help with concerns. I have lively conversation with Him.
Yes, times have changed.
Well what do you know. All it takes is having a car break down and a cellphone to have your daughter break your record of parental interaction. If the car was perfectly fine prior to it not starting, and it wasn't overheating, it's most likely batteries, which was also the case here. While I don't think you'd wish for more car breakdowns, perhaps there are other opportunities for her to call back. Yes, times have changed, but it looks to be for the better!
ReplyDeleteTaleen Kizirian @ JimAndJacks.com
Thank you for your thought, Taleen.
DeleteI noticed that you have an Armenian name. I too am Armenian. My maiden name is Margosian.
I hope you have a pleasant day. Stephanie