Saving my pinned thread from Twitter, just in case. It was originally posted in 2017.
Losing patience with folks who romanticize life before mobile phones.
I was parent to a medically-fragile kid for about seven years before I got a cell phone.
When we could find a respite carer, I still stayed in the house–closed bedroom door, took a nap–couldn’t go out of earshot for long.
When he was in a program or therapy session without me, I stayed in the parking lot, just in case.
Getting a cell phone meant I could go for walks by myself. Sit in a cafe and read. Take a class!
Mobile tech lets me be away from my son without worrying that every passing ambulance is for him. Because it might be.
If your class or party or restaurant has a no-phones policy, I can’t go there. I can’t even imagine going there.
So miss me with stories about “wonderful” classroom ideas or lunchtime games that shame or exclude anyone who needs to be reachable.
If I could actually arrange to be unreachable for several hours at a stretch, I would probably spend that time sleeping.
The friends I value are the ones who accept that I might need to take a call, or suddenly be called away from lunch or a party.
And for the folks who say “oh, but, everyone needs a break sometimes,” I say this: if your worries vanish when you don’t have your phone, they’re not like my worries.
And for folks who say “well, I’m sure we could make an exception for you,” I’d rather you made your activity more inclusive, so I don’t have to ask (because I probably won’t, I ask too much already).
Pennamite 