Troubling Consequences

Independence doesn’t come easily, and is also a characteristic that becomes increasingly more vital as time goes by, and our lives change.  It is a learned behavior, and one that took many years for me to master.  Truthfully, it was due to my Mother, who despite not having a Masters Degree in Psychology, had an innate knowledge of how to mandate her oldest daughter learn the necessity of self-reliance.

If it hadn’t been for Mom, I would probably still be sitting at a window drawing pictures and writing stores.  I wasn’t always grateful for her vigilance, but during the decades that followed, more often than I can relate, I have had occasion to send her a silent prayer of gratitude.

Several things have occurred in the past month, however, good things, yes, but with troubling consequences that threaten my stability. 

First, the lease on my car came to an end causing me to look for a replacement.  This was achieved easily and efficiently with the assistance of a courteous and knowledgeable salesman.  I am quite pleased with my new car, but becoming increasingly reliant on all the innovative 2014 features lacking in my old vehicle.  They are easy, perhaps too much so, for someone holding on desperately to her independence.

I no longer use a key to start and turn off the engine.  Almost miraculously, a touch of a button achieves that.

I no longer need to adjust my seat, a wonderful invisible assistant does that for me, both entering and leaving the vehicle.

I only have to speak to change stations on my XM radio.  Not a big deal, but one more thing someone does for me.

My cell phone is part of the Blue Tooth feature, and now I press an audio button, and the phone call is handled.  Akin to having my own personal assistant, and perhaps in a way, I do even though it is non-human.

About the time I turned in my car, I decided it was also time to enter today’s world, relinquish my antique cell phone and purchase an IPhone.  The transition was relatively simple due to having owned an IPad for several years, but it did introduce a new element into my life.  SIRI now accompanies me almost everywhere, usually snuggled in my purse.  While not quite a caregiver, she is a source of information, providing comfort in overcoming any travel anxieties, and definitely presents another threat to my hard earned independence.

So what do I do, step back in time or become increasingly dependent on various assistants albeit technological?  It is, as the King said, a conundrum.  As our lives become easier, it is difficult not to become complacent about accepting assistance.  I believe I must make a difficult decision.  I will avoid my new friend, SIRI, as much as possible.  I will seek out my own information rather than taking the easy route and querying her, him, or it.  I have found myself involved too heavily with SIRI’s first cousin, Wikipedia.  Admittedly, it will be traumatic severing this relationship, but every inch of the hard earned independence that I relinquish brings me perilously closer to losing the self-reliance my Mother worked so hard for me to achieve.  I do believe if I were younger, perhaps by two or three decades, I might find the temptation more alluring.  I find myself incredibly attracted to the subtle comfort of never being quite alone in a car and knowing the blissful joy of constant communication even when SIRI is hidden in my purse.  I pray  will never forget the mantra Mom taught me so very long ago.  “You are able to do it, and I know you can.”  Thanks, Mom!