What's sacred?

If you ever have heard a story about one of my family vacations as a child, it probably took place at Colonial Williamsburg, Gettysburg, or Jamestown. My parents loved to take us to vacation spots with historical importance. However, there was a time when we went to the beach! Cape May, NJ in fact!

I know for a fact that this actually happened, because there is video evidence of it! Granted most of that video is black-mail material against me. Oh, if I could go back and tell my 5 year old self what I know today! ;) My parents still have the videos somewhere in their house. Although, they are stored on ancient tablets called VHS Tapes. Here I am, getting all nostalgic about videos of my childhood. And, if you asked your teen they would be like, "Yeah, video. Everybody takes them. No big deal." But, oh it was a big deal! My dad had to lug that video camera on his shoulder! And the amount of extra batteries he had to carry, is probably an EPA violation now.

Dad's, had a black plastic briefcase to carry it too. Put that in your pocket!

Why did he do it? Two reasons:

1. His camera was state of the art technology. And, he was the bees-knees on the beach for having it!
2. He wanted to capture all those sacred and beautiful moments of his family.

My dad invested in technology so he could capture the sacred moments. Is it worth taking a picture? That's the question that separated the cute moments from the sacred ones. My dad had to buy VHS Tapes to record on. If he took a picture, he had to have the film developed. And, film wasn't cheap. Especially, if you wanted to actually see the picture you took! Oh... then mishandle the film... And, Bam! All your memories are ruined by the light. In essence, if it was worth the money and work, it was sacred enough to capture.

Fast forward to 2014, and every teen has a smart phone; and, the ability to take, edit, and publish video and pictures in minutes. It feels like sacred is not sacred anymore. Just check out your teens social media platform of choice. Whether it be FaceBook, Instagram, TUMBLR, Twitter, or Vine. So much of their lives are broadcasted for everyone to see. It's all so public. And for a generation that grew up developing and being introduced to social media, not as social media natives, it feels overwhelmingly shallow and narcissistic. Have our teens lost all connection with the sacred and special moments in life? Or, are they just tucked away somewhere else?

Sorry, this moment was too sacred.

There has been an interesting switch in how we capture the sacred moments in our lives. And, honestly, as a 28 year old I feel like I've lived in both worlds. I watched my parents capture sacred moments on film, and I have done the same. My first camera was a Fuji point and shoot; and, I evaluated each shot asking, "Is it worth getting printed?' or "Is it sacred enough to take a picture?" Yet, today I don't ask those questions any more. I pull out my camera and click away... Ok, smartphone and click away. I post pictures of my bikes, my food, and my daughter to social media instantly. I "share" my life digitally with friends.  Don't get me wrong, I believe the digital community I am active in, is just that, a form of community.

But, now if a moment is really truly sacred, I don't snap a picture. I simply absorb it. The litmus test for what is sacred has changed. Now, we ask, "It is sacred enough to just be present to?" Go back and look at your teen's social media pages. What's between posts? You know, between the moments of frantic postings, selfies, and status updates. Did something sacred happen? Possibly. But those moments are kept private now, in our public and digital world. Maybe our teens aren't as shallow or narcissistic as we once thought. Maybe, they're better at being present to the sacred than we are.

Trust me, my daughter has done some amazing things recently; and, I just left my phone in my pocket. Sorry social media friends... those moments are just between us.