In the Parlance of Our Times

The first house we bought, in early 1981 Ireland, didn't have a landline. The previous owners had applied for one, but there was a long waiting list and we were facing into another 18 months before we'd finally have a phone. Having lived until that point with a telephone in every dwelling, life without a landline was a bit inconvenient but we managed.

So I find it amusing that my children have chosen not to install landlines in their apartments. Not that it's the same now as it was for us. Back then we used a neighbor's phone or, if we could find one that worked, a payphone. We made appointments to be near a phone so that we could receive a call at Christmas or for a birthday. These arrangements had to be done via mail - international mail at that - since there were few other communication options at that time.

My kids use cell phones, of course. They're not giving up anything when they choose not to install a landline. Rather, they're simply doing away with a redundant utility. It makes perfect sense that they not bother installing a service they don't need, especially at this stage in life when they tend to move often.

So we share an early adulthood experience with our kids - no landlines - but the results couldn't be more different. We were never reachable. They're always reachable. I kind of think that we had the better deal. Our parents couldn't call us and we couldn't call them. We were truly on our own, figuring out for ourselves how to do all those things that you do when you first leave home. There may have been times we'd have liked some advice, but mostly we were quite happy making it up as we went along. Besides, the parents had already spent years preparing us for this time, to the point where we could pretty much predict what they'd say to any situation. Michael used to say every time he got soaked in a downpour that he heard his mother in his head saying "Change every stitch!"

I need to remember this the next time I reach for the phone because it's been a while since I've heard from one of the kids. They're fine. And if not, we're in their heads telling them exactly what to do. I just hope they're listening.