Use the phone this holiday season for out-of-town relatives!
It’s the holiday’s – and there’s no debate, tradition rules. You must learn to use your voice over your keypad.
With technology – a text just isn’t enough.
You aren’t going to get away with sending grandma and grandpa a text message. Great Aunt Holly and Uncle Jess need more than a emoji to know you are thinking of them.
We are living in a fast-paced society where we talk about unplugging yet rarely do it.
However it doesn’t mean we can’t connect with our voices if we aren’t able to visit our relatives or close friends over the holidays.
In a PEW Study this past summer, although texting is the most common form of communication for teens – when it comes to close relationships, especially their closest friends, they prefer to connect through the phone.
Call your family members – reach out and say hello. Especially those that will send you a gift or a thoughtful card. Don’t text a message of gratitude – call them with message of thankfulness with meaning behind it.
Why do we need to call instead of text?
- A phone call is in real-time. You show the person they matter – and are worth your time. It’s not just a few keystrokes during something else you are doing.
- Hearing someone’s voice is always so much more special. I don’t think we can ever know what it means to an elderly person when they receive a call from their grandchild (young adult) from far away – or any relative that is lonely. Young people take for granted what it’s like to hear the voices of themselves to others. This isn’t only for elderly – everyone likes to hear the voice of a friend or relative at the holiday time, knowing they are being thought of.
- Old-school matters. There’s nothing wrong with putting tradition back into our lives. Just because texting is the new form of communication, it doesn’t mean it’s the best form to show your loved ones you care – especially at the holidays. Let’s keep some things the same.
- No room for misunderstanding. Let’s face it, with today’s text-talk, many people don’t understand the lingo and sometimes conversations can go astray. When you literally talk, there is less likely any room for miscommunication. Chat for real – it matters.
As someone that lost my last grandparent this year, I can share with you that I wish I could make that call. At 99 years old, she never texted. It was always a call and although she was hard of hearing, even with those hearing aids, she looked forward to all her calls from her grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Never, ever put off a phone call to that special person. Especially the elderly. They enjoy your voice.
For some reason your text messages and emoji’s just don’t sound the same.
