Three years ago, I made the decision to put the phone on silent when I drove my children. To help control any sudden urges to check the screen, I put the phone in my purse and placed it on the floorboard of the passenger seat where it could not be reached. Immediately, the atmosphere in the car changed. With one flip of the ‘off’ button, I was available to the little girls sitting in the backseat of my car. The fact that they noticed and responded to my newfound availability was evident.
It became clear that my children had missed their mother chatting with them, pointing to things as we drove, and asking them questions about their day. With the phone turned off and out of reach, I was back in the driver’s seat of life… literally and figuratively.
Looking back now, I find it ironic that I’d always kept my phone turned on and nearby because I thought I would miss something ‘important.’ I was actually missing what was most important by being tied to my phone while driving.
Posted on 11/7/2013
Written by Rachel Macy Stafford, Author of upcoming book “Hands Free Mama”
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