I'm a baby-boomer but I feel like a generation-xer, wounded and autistic, unable to really connect with very many different types of people. I feel this in a personal way but I also understand the way in which the breath-taking pace of life that technological change forces upon us, in the urban jungle we call our city, numbs us all to fully experiencing personal relationships.

This is distressing for me as I'm taught and believe that God chooses to be relational to humans above almost anything else He chooses to do. I'm willing to admit that sin is frequently the cause of these feelings of alienation from others, but still I often feel unsure, uneasy about what I should bring to any one relationship. As if I don't have the ability or right to read the other person's meaning or needs so that I might attempt to be a blessing to them - even in a small way.

There was a so-called "futurist" writer in the '80's by the name of Nesbitt who said that to balance out the relentless push of more complexity brought about by higher technological advancement we consiously had to engage others around us in low touch practices.  This meant more recreational and other types of activities aimed at meeting human needs and refreshing the human spirit that technology can rob from us.

Marshall McLuhan recommended that we all learn about computers so that we knew how to turn them off.

RobS