Lost Phone

            My smart-phone continues to amaze me. I still fill with wonder when I consider all it can do.  To me, it’s magic because I grew up with a rotary dial telephone that had to be plugged in a socket attached to a wall.  It could do nothing else but transfer voices over distances outside our home and could not be carried around.  Also, it had party lines, so any busy-body could listen in.

  Making these comments reminds of a time I lost my mobile phone.  Gone!  I was astounded at how upset I was because I really had no idea as to where I could have left it, and I was pretty sure it had not been stolen.

            So I did what we all do when our phones disappear.  I used my land phone to dial my mobile phone while I strode through the house listening for the phone’s ring.  Nothing!  Then I went to my car and dialed again.  Nothing!  Then I visited a couple of places where I had last used my phone. Nothing! Finally, I found a quiet place and mentally revisited everywhere I had been before my phone had vanished.

            A group of people in our church had prepared a fellowship meal for our church family which I had attended the evening before I realized my phone was gone.  The entertainment for the evening featured a male quartet, four young men who were simply outstanding.  At the conclusion of their performance, I had stood to give them a standing ovation.  Could my phone have slipped from my pocket when I stood?

            I drove to the church as quickly as I dared and asked the church secretary to dial my mobile number.  When I opened the door to the church sanctuary, I could hear my phone ringing!  Found!  It was on the carpet under the church pew where I had sat and I had not heard it fall because of the applause. I was surprised at how immensely overjoyed I was to find it.  One would have thought I had just found a lost child.

            This experience taught me some characteristics about myself that I was not aware of until I lost my phone.  First, my pride was hurt.  I think I should have enough control of my life to be responsible for my possessions and not lose them.  Then, angry frustration took over.  I should be capable of being in control of that part of my life for which I should be in charge.  And I wasn’t.  My phone was gone and I did not know where it was.  Now I am not really a “techie junkie.”  A few years ago I managed just fine without a mobile phone.  I think that’s why I was so surprised that I was so upset because the phone was gone.

            Another concern deals with technology itself.  Am I becoming too dependent on this smart-phone?  After all, because of technology, I have at my fingertips an alarm clock, e-mail capabilities, texting, a calculator, and the internet among many other “magic“ advantages, let alone I can use it as a telephone.  It can be addictive to be having my phone in my hand all the time.

            I have decided I need a proper balance.  I should appreciate all the amazing benefits technology offers, but never allow myself to rely on them and not think for myself.  My mobile phone is not necessary like my need for food, water and rest; however, you can bet I am keeping a closer eye on this phone from now on.