I loved my maternal grandparents very much, but after we moved to Oregon, I only got to see them every few years, since they lived in Buffalo, New York. We got to talk to them on Christmas every year. Long distance phone calls were expensive and complicated to arrange. My grandparents would place a call with an operator. Then we would wait all day for the operator to call and say, “I have a person to person call for D.” Then my dad would get on the phone and we would all take turns saying a quick “Merry Christmas” before we had to hang up “before this all costs too much.”
One of the things I am grateful for this Advent is unlimited long distance phone calls for a set price. We moved across the country 15 years ago, leaving close friends behind in Oregon. Some of our friends had also moved around the country. I have made new friends here, but there is no replacement for people who have known you deeply for much of your life.
Now I am able to talk, at length, to these friends as often as we like. We don’t have to worry, as we once did, about what it is costing us. We can have deep conversations and maintain a real connection.
I never could have believed that would happen, back when long distance was an event!
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When I was a kid, long distance calls usually meant someone had died, so we always received them with trepidation. I remember party lines, too, and how we children had to be careful what we said and that we spoke properly when we were on the telephone, in case anyone nosy listened in. : )
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I forgot about party lines! It was a big deal when we had a phone that was just for us.
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I, too, am so grateful for the freedom to talk at length, and remember college days trying to stay connected to a beau long distance. That was hard.
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