Friends with It

Tech Isn’t Going Anywhere, Time To Make Friends With It

Al Del Degan

When my father was alive, he

was one of those “old school” folks. He grew up in the days of Frank Sinatra and his first brand new car was a ‘56 chevy. He was a very intelligent man, but he grew up long before the transistor had been invented. Technology, to him, was always something he didn’t understand, didn’t want to understand, and didn’t want to be bothered with having to understand. He only got Internet service because he won a free iPad and wanted to be able to use it. He was practical that way, but his overwhelming fear of technology left him feeling inadequate. You would often hear him say things like “you young people understand this stuff, I was born too long ago.” When I think back on it, I am frustrated that my father never wanted to learn. About all I could teach him on his iPad was to scan

Al Del Degan and his dad, Alido Del Degan his lottery tickets to see if he won anything. Multiple family members and friends, including myself, tried to show him how to use email and find videos on YouTube, but it was a lost cause. He just had a fear that he could not overcome.

It would have been great if my dad was more comfortable with technology though. When he was stuck in the hospital, he could have talked with people over video conferencing and even ordered delicious food to be delivered to him. Instead he was very lonely, staring at the wall and waiting for people to come and visit him. People could not come though, due to the lockdowns.

A few years ago, I remember reading a story about an 82-year-old woman who learned how to program a computer on her own. She got her first computer at age 60, and immediately took to it because she was curious. She learned how to chat online, and says it gave her a new sense of purpose. Ultimately she got frustrated with the lack of games that are tailored to seniors so she taught herself how to write code, and created her first iPhone app. She even did a TED Talk in the hopes of inspiring other seniors to embrace technology and never stop learning. (https://bit. ly/3ugLoC4) That’s not to say that everyone needs to become a software developer. If you can just motivate yourself to not be afraid of technology, there are so many amazing things you can learn. If you can learn to use a computer, you can take free online courses on any topic you can imagine, from gardening to astro physics. Being able to use video conferencing on a computer can allow you to meet and talk to people anywhere in the world while being able to see their faces. Having the knowledge to use email and being able to search for information on the Internet could help you fix a leaky faucet without calling an expensive plumber. Or you can learn what herbal supplement could help you with your dry skin instead of paying for expensive prescriptions.

If you haven’t already figured it out, the goal of this article is to make it clear that you are never too old to be curious, never too old to enjoy learning. Technology is here to stay, so it is time to make friends with it. In fact, using computers can boost your brain and significantly reduce memory loss and cognitive decline. (https://bit.ly/3uopAEy) If you don’t use it, you lose it.

You would often hear him say things like “you young people understand this stuff, I was born too long ago.”