Hey you!!!

A couple weeks ago on a warm Saturday I took Nixon over to the farm while Grandpa and Uncle Matt were building a chicken coop. They were using a tractor with a bucket as a ladder. Nixon being a tractor lover climbed right up on it and began to push and pull every knob, lever, and gearshift he could find in an attempt to start that tractor. When his attempts didn't work he began calling to Grandpa to let him know his tractor was broke. The conversation went something like this .... Grandpa. What?? It's broke. What's broke ?? Tractors broke. Oh yeah it won't start for ya will it. Grandpa. What ?? It's broke. What?? It's broke. Oh yea I guess it is. All while Grandpa was still trying to work on the chicken coop. This went on for a while but Grandpa got into a more technical part of the coop and his mind became absorbed by what he was doing. Then the conversation went something like this. Grandpa. Grandpa it's broke. Grandpa. Grandpa. Grandpa it's broke. It's broke. Grandpa. HEY YOU!! Grandpa stopped working and payed attention again. It made me wonder how often do we get so busy that the important people need to yell HEY YOU to get our attention. I see young moms on their smartphones or tablets Pintresting or Facebooking while their kid is trying everything to get their attention. At the restaurant having a quiet romantic dinner are you gazing into your loved one 's eyes or into your smartphone. Are you so busy with your life that the people around you are begging for attention and you don't even notice. How often in the evenings do you look around and someone is on the computer, someone is texting, someone is watching TV and YouTube on their IPad.  When did we stop paying attention to each other. All the new technology makes our lives easier. But it also makes it easier to become totally detached from what is happening all around us. This Christmas give your friends and family the gift of you. All of you. Not just the top of your head as you look down at the device in your hand. Talk to them and look at them at the same time. Pay attention to the people around you that might be crying out for your attention. See if you can do some projects instead of just pinning them. Talk to your friends about what's going on in your lives rather than just Facebooking about it. You just might rediscover the art of conversation.