A Growing Abyss

     It is that time of year again. The time where we try to make time to see those that we hold dear. With the fast paced American life, some of us only have this time to see family. This brings up an interesting question about our roots and why some of us drift so far apart that the only interaction we have with those that we used to see everyday is through social media. It is so easy to become detached from your roots because that is what is expected of you in independent America. But we also need to remember that everyone has an extremely limited amount of time on this Earth. So how do we balance the family that we take for granted with the expectations of society.
    
     We are becoming very busy and this leads to time flying by. It is hard to believe that the next generation in my family are already in grade school learning societal norms. They go to school and come home then race to the tablets and televisions to get their afternoon fix. The holidays were a time where we watch "Santa Clause is Coming to Town" and help bake cookies while exploring what we were grateful for before the year came to a close. Now I notice all the youngsters on their electronics while Santa Clause is on and the texts are flying during cookie time. In a world of growing technology, how do we break the new status quo and reconnect with our loved ones. Time is already limited enough and the ever changing world is shortening it even more.

     Life always has a way of keeping us from our family. It is either because of work, an activity we have been planning, or distance between our old life and new. During this holiday time I challenge you to set aside 24 hours of being disconnected from the man made barriers and spend time with family members that you may not have seen in awhile. Cook together, play interactive holiday board or card games, build that snowman so that we can reestablish the bonds and stop the growing abyss.