As I grew older and began to explore new geographic locations for work and home, long car rides became an even more essential part of life because flying was not an economical option. An all-day and all-night return drive to Bozeman, Montana, from my family’s farm in northeastern North Dakota, with our infant son in tow, is one of the most memorable.
We were driving an old pickup at the time, without the luxury of today’s crew cab for extra wiggle room. Situated directly between my wife and me, in a car seat occupying far more than 1/3 of the seat, my son began to communicate rather explicitly, and we understood in no uncertain terms this 17-hour drive was not going well. He wanted out of his car seat. NOW. And he was no longer taking no for an answer.
As new parents, my wife and I struggled with setting him free and still driving. We wanted to be good, safe parents. Though both of us remembered innumerable trips crammed like sardines in an old Ford with aunts, uncles and cousins. Seatbelts and car seats, what were those?
Well, in the end, my son’s exceptional communication skills proved so persuasive we completed the final third of the journey with his seat strapped down in the truck bed. (No, not with him in it – though I must admit… but I digress.)
I believe this is all still so vivid in part because my son delivered his message to us with excruciating clarity. Not all messages are so loud and clear. And today, despite all the new ways to get your message across, it can sometimes get lost in the incredible clutter. Today, messages from my sons come in texts, tweets, snaps, Facebook or Instagram posts. On a recent road trip of his own, my now 23-year-old son “snapped” me from Chicagoland Speedway. Clearly, he still enjoys loud things.
And isn’t that something? I mean, all these new-fangled ways of communicating would have seemed almost alien a quarter century ago. Who knows what tomorrow has in store?
In the meantime, we at NASGW have an ever-expanding list of stories to tell. We’ve been working especially hard over the past few years to share them in new and better ways. In the coming weeks and months, we’ll be even better at using some of the social media channels mentioned above to expand our storytelling ability even further.
In particular, our Twitter account, @NASGW_Pros, will be a great outreach tool for a lot of our new stories. If you haven’t checked us out there yet, I encourage you to give us a follow. Our NASGW YouTube channel is also growing with content outlining the reasons for and benefits of two-step distribution. And there’s a lot more to come.
I hope you’ve been able to stay cool, get refreshed and enjoy the summertime. I hope your road trips have been a great vehicle for family communication (though hopefully not the hysterical crying kind).
Folks, it won’t be long and the 2018 NASGW Expo will be upon us. Preparations continue and if you need anything, please don’t hesitate to let us know. I look forward to seeing you in Pittsburgh in October.
Until next time,
Kenyon Gleason
NASGW President