Ever wonder why we don't feel as connected as we used to, or why we pick up our phones at every slight discomfort in order to make ourselves comfortable? Instead of being in the present and connecting with the world around us, we just go digital to a space where we are always and mostly comfortable.
I think phones should be banned at family gatherings, so everyone is in the present and can concentrate on what is actually happening around them and be open to creating memories. It should be banned at the dinner and also during any form of get-together.
I am a sucker for spending quality time together as a family. I lobby for it any chance I get. One of the ways I do this is by suggesting we play board games together. Board games like monopoly, scrabble, chess, Ludo, and all sorts. Even card games. I believe family is number one, and we should create bonds and memories we will cherish forever. I love me some good family time.
As a family, one of our regular rituals is to have our morning devotions, where we spend time together and share God's word. This is great because we share God's word, we learn, and we become better. But this shouldn't be the only way we spend time together as a family, because we have other aspects of our lives we would love to explore. And when we can do that as a family, I believe we should.
Visiting the beach. I think visiting the beach together as a family is a great way to spend time together in another setting. We can try new things together and witness ourselves doing so. It helps build the bond. And it is a safe place to try new things because you are with family.
I remember going to the beach twice or three times while I was younger with my family and family friends; though my memory is blurry, I remember it would have been awesome. And I would love to do more of that.
We did one also quite recently, though it was with more faces—our church family. It was really nice. It would have also been nice if we had one for our nuclear family, where it would be just us.
Going to an amusement park was also an experience I really cherished. There, you could try multiple things in the safe net of your family surrounding you. I would not trade that for anything.
I remember going to the amusement park more times than we did to the beach, though still quite a few times. The bumper-car section in the amusement park was and still is my favorite. It was an opportunity for me to show my violent ability, hahaha 😂. I always targeted my favorite people and bumped them by the side at full speed. It was awesome.
Also, we had family road trips. Most of them were when I and my brother were resuming school. Our mom would drive us a long distance for long hours. About 3 hours, if not more. We travelled from Lagos, Olowora to Ogun State, Abeokuta. It was quite the journey. I would sleep most of it, but it was an experience with family outside being at home.
The really fun and exciting ones were when we went exploring places. I remember when we drove to the island to just view the beautiful sights. And talk about how awesome they were. We would visit restaurants, buy pizza, food, and ice cream, and try different things.
Another family time I enjoy is when we go to visit an extended family member or a family friend. New equals exciting for me. I was always excited to meet my cousins and spend time with them. Or meet my friends and do things together.
It could either be to play video games together, play football, table tennis, or ice and water (one of my childhood games), and the list of things keeps going. We never really ran out of things to do when we were together. And they were the most fun parts of my childhood.
Most of these times spent with family or friends were best enjoyed without the use of phones or digital devices, unless in the case of video games, where we played them together.
Thank you for stopping by. Cheers 🥂