Drowning In Digital

It’s not often that I read a New York Times article and feel like I’m hearing background music from Roberta Flack, as in “Killing me softly with his song, telling my whole life with his words.”  I’m exaggerating, but let’s just say as a parent raising children in the Digital Age, I related deeply, and even wrote to the author and got a hopeful reply.

I’m going to keep this one short, because I’m soon to be heading out on vacation.  But the article that stirred me so was a book review by Dwight Garner centered around three books, each of which in varying ways, grapple with the issue of just how wired kids are these days, what it means, and what, if anything, parents should do about it. I don’t want to give too much away here, but what moved me was Garner’s very personal account of how he and his wife often feel like they’re flailing about—if not outright failing—as they observe their children live such deeply digital lives.

Please read it here and let me know if you have any advice for him (because really it would be advice for me).

I leave you on this happy note. I wrote Garner to compliment and commiserate with him, and he graciously responded.

“I’m still optimistic!” he wrote.

In truth, I am too.

Eric Messinger is the Editor of New York Family. He can be reached at
emessinger@manhattanmedia.com