I had to pick up Oldest from his Confirmation class. There are a lot of teenagers in that class, maybe 100 or more.

I arrive towards the tail end of class and stand just inside the doors to wait for them to finish. The lights are dim because they are having a quiet reflection time. They finish, dismiss everyone, but lights stay dim.

What do I see coming towards me? A sea of teenagers. I’d say 80% of them I could only see the top of their head… not because I am at least a foot taller than them, but because they have their heads down, face illuminated by the liquid crystal glow coming from their phones… texting or dialing or flipping through messages as they walked.

First, I felt old because it was obviously a sign of the younger generation.

Second, I felt upset because none of these kids had any awareness of what was going on around them. I’m thinking next time about standing in the middle of the aisle to see how many run into me.

Zero awareness.

Recipe for danger. And I’m not just talking about something like getting mugged. But even more mundane things like walking into something or tripping over something.

*sigh*