Alexa…

Over the past several years we have been moving into a “smart home” situation at our house. I began putting in smart speakers which then asked for smart outlets, smart lights, and the like. Walking around our house typically involves someone say “Alexa, turn on…” or “Echo turn off…”. I’m sure I’m not the only one doing this nowadays. For the most part it works well and is kind of fun. We even have scheduled events like turning on nightlights at sunset then dimming them at midnight then turning them off at sunrise. I don’t even think about lights at night any longer, I just presume that it will happen.

The idea of the smart home is that it makes life a bit easier. In many ways it does. But it also creates a bit of laziness as well. I know that the light in the living room will turn off at half past midnight even if I forget to turn it off. The comfort and ease is mostly good, but the lazy can be problematic.

Last night I went through my bed time routines and machinations. I brushed my teeth and put my clothes in the hamper (yes, I did Bev!). I asked me trusty nightstand device to play coqui frogs for me through the night, then as I began to approach prayer I started to utter the familiar “Echo…” command. I was on autopilot and started to pass my prayer duties on to my digital assistant. Yikes!

Having things be easier is nice, it really is. Yet sometimes that easy breeds complacency. I need to keep myself focused on what is important and continue to do the right things. I just might need to turn off the Alexa in order to…

—Rise Up!!