More red light moments—we need them now more than ever.
When driving, did you ever catch yourself looking over at someone to your left while waiting at a red light? Sometimes, you glance over, and other times you have to look a little longer? Maybe something piqued your interest like a song you heard, or perhaps the person looked familiar?
Maybe it’s time to stop looking into the lives of everyone around us online, and start looking at the lives in front of us—the ones who love and need us the most.
Robyn D. Shulman
Looking around at other drivers used to be the norm–especially at a red light. Nobody had their heads down before mobile phones.
Two days ago, I was driving home from Panera. There were three lanes to the main road—one to go right, one to go left, and one to go straight.
I was driving straight. I turned my eyes to get a glimpse of the driver next to me who was waiting to turn left.
There was a young teenage boy in the passenger’s seat, and his father was in the driver’s seat.
The boy kept glancing at his father back and forth over and over. He didn’t say a word. He kept looking at him with a craving face for discussion–for anything.
I noticed the father was scrolling through Facebook (because I could see the glare from his window).
Instead of looking at his son, he was more interested in looking at the lives of other people on his mobile phone.
The young teen finally gave up, tightened his eyes, and put his headphones on to listen to music.
A red light moment missed—a bonding time where a son was craving his father’s attention.
And, these stories are everywhere.
Maybe it’s time to stop looking into the lives of everyone around us online, and start looking at the lives in front of us—the ones who love and need us the most.
Robyn D. Shulman
We’ve become so disconnected in our own homes, with our true friends, and even with our children-who need us now more than ever. And, it’s illegal to use your phone while driving in Illinois (not a great role-model).
I hope you can take this small note with you as the school year begins, and make time to look at your own life, nourish it, and give your loved ones the attention they deserve.
Please connect with your family–talk, laugh, and truly listen to your kids. Your feeds, emails, text messages-all will most likely always be there–your loved ones won’t always be there.
Robyn D. Shulman
Create red light moments you’ll never forget.