12-24-2012, 02:25 PM
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Franchise Player
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Djibouti
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Alone with a Gadget for Christmas
A really nice, thoughtful article about how tech can help us make a difference during what can be a tough time for some.
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.... Christmas, the holiday season, isn't about you. It's about family and togetherness and shared experiences. At least that's what all the adverts tell me.
Yet some people will spend Christmas all alone.
Perhaps they have no family left. Perhaps they have fallen out with their families to such a degree that nothing can be repaired. Perhaps their lovers have left them, their children have disowned them, or death has visited their loved ones with a cruel finality.
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Those will be the people who, on Xmas Day, will be sitting with their gadgets -- not to play with them, but because they offer a lone hope.
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With gadgets, they can believe in the unexpected on Xmas Day itself. They can hope that their lonely Xmas Day might be interrupted, brightened, lifted by someone's spontaneous and immediate thought.
It could be an e-mail or a text or a call. It might say: "I'm sorry," "I miss you," or "I wish you were here." It might be a picture of a grandchild, a lost love, a gathering, or a vacation.
Most importantly, there's the hope that it won't only be personal, it will be spontaneous. It won't necessarily say: "I'm sending you a Christmas card or thought, because that's what I'm supposed to do."
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Think about one person you know who might be alone this Xmas. Think about how, if you can't be with them, you could use your gadget not merely to offer them a few seconds of your time, but to make their day in a way they would never expect.
Then act on it. Instead of checking into Facebook or Foursquare, instead of tweeting something profoundly inane, take your gadget and do the one thing -- whatever that might be -- to make the alone person's Christmas memorable.
Apologize, flatter, admit, cajole, warm, embrace, tickle, inspire, reveal, or wish.
They just might appreciate it. They just might be hoping for it.
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