At least five times a day, I hear someone - either in frustration or condescension - say, "Well, I guess you just can't teach an old dog new tricks."
It's been said and said again so often it is now accepted as an absolute, undeniable fact. I do believe that even many of us old dogs are convinced it's true.
It's time we call "enough" to this disparagement. We must rise up and challenge those who would spread such rumors. We must start a campaign, possibly including a march on the Federal Building with banners and chanting our theme, "Old maybe, but we have the know-how."
We might even invite The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals to join our movement as certainly the statement is defaming old dogs as well as old people.
Changing technology, new skills
Think back two or three decades.
Electronics was a word that seemed to be something that wasn't electricity, but then again it was similar and could do tasks that were right out of James Bond - sci-fi at its best.
Time marched on, and we found we wanted to conquer stereo and speakers and even the new jargon as sound entered the new age. Quickly, even at our antique age, we knew better then to mention our phonograph.
After sitting up studying various buttons on our tape deck and learning new jargon, we would discuss woofer and tweeter and other strange terms and even copy to a tape when we wanted to save a tune.
But lest we grew complacent, along came the remote. Imagine a television that could be tuned from clear across the room.
Then came CDs and DVDs and, in the kitchen, a coffeepot you could pour beans into at night and awaken in the morning to the delectable scent of fresh-brewed coffee. You could turn lights on regardless whether you were in the room. You could heat up your bed without a water bottle.
And then came the computer.
From computer to cell phone
I'm sure that any senior of sound mind first viewed the computer with disdain, then with terror as he or she contemplated using one.
With constant reminders that children could be in constant communication if we only had e-mail, and how handy it would be for us to order just about anything on-line or find out what time a movie started or what that quote from Shelley was, we finally took the bait and tried using a computer at the senior center and actually learned to turn it on and off and get on-line.
One day, I e-mailed several children at once to remind them of their father's birthday; I felt triumphant.
We had no time to feel superior about our computer skills, however, because right on its heels came the cell phone. We no longer were safe if we didn't have one in case of emergency, the worriers said.
So we were given one on our next birthday, and we learned to use it adequately. Maybe we can't always retrieve messages or use all the bells and whistles, but it is reassuring to have the phone in hand.
What the future holds
Now that we elders have conquered the cell phone, we have had no new achievements to accomplish. We can relax and enjoy the wonderful things we have learned to do.
But with Christmas just passed, I'm sure the great minds have come up with some electronic wonder, and just you watch - we old dogs will relish one more opportunity to learn new tricks.
Roberta Cole can be reached via e-mail at mptimes@ nwlink.com.
[[In-content Ad]]
