Just Because You Can ...

This trip has been my first experience with the electronic book--the Amazon Kindle. For this trip, it has been great. I cannot imagine how much my suitcase would weigh if I had to bring enough books to last for a three week trip to the other side of the world. But the booksellers association need not fear that I will completely abandon them. The Kindle is convenient and space-smart and "gadget cool," but it will never fully replace paper for me. Don't get me wrong, the Kindle was a gift on my recent birthday and I am grateful. It will just not be my only source of reading material in the future.

I am not among those who see devices like the Kindle as the end of books, magazines, and newspapers. If the internet did not kill all of these "old" media, then an electronic book will not either. There will always be enough people who will remember the hefty weight of a classic; who will never want to fall asleep under War and Peace; who enjoy the tactile experience of turning pages.

Certainly there are attractions to electronic media, but just because we could go the route of making all media electronic in form, doesn't mean that we should. Sometimes we tend to feel like any advance--technological or otherwise--is a good advance that should be pursued. But I wonder whether we would be better off putting some advances on hold. I read a story recently about a family who would eat supper each night by candlelight. Not for ambiance, but in order to force a slowing down of life.

Here in India there is certainly plenty of hustle and bustle. With more than a billion people in your country, it goes without saying. I am surrounded by all of this activity, but it is such a relief to go back to the hotel room and sit in the peace and quiet--and just sit still. I cannot help but wonder whether I can bring some of that peace back to daily life at home. In the midst of the hustle and bustle of graduation and wedding and off-to-college, I feel like I must find some time to slow down.

I think that it will come down to a choice--just because I can have a life filled with hustle and bustle, do I need to choose to live that way? Or is there a better way?

Pressing On!