Much of my life I have lived far from some members of our family.  As a kid either living in the east or west most of our family lived in Ontario. We took the train or drove for visits but my folks were quite creative in how they communicated with our family. I remember the reel to reel tape on to which we recorded messages. Those messages included updates on school, Army activities, family news, sometimes songs or stories. But it was always an attempt to stay in touch.

Today it’s so much easier to stay in touch with Google Hangout (which we use) or things like facetime, Facebook, YouTube and the like.

With family at either end of the country, we talk often about how nice it would be to be able to get together on a Saturday or to have everyone over for dinner.

That desire to be together was underscored this week when Mom found herself in need to have some medical attention and I was able to help that happen and to be with her. I was glad I was nearby, she was nearby.  How ever you want to say that I was glad.

The world may be getting smaller through the use of technology, but it is clear families have been, for some time, have been getting more dispersed.