Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
Keeping in touch, the Web way
|
They are not very comfortable with it, but more and more older women are turning to the Internet to keep in touch with family, writes PANKAJA SRINIVASAN
|
NET SAVVY: Meera Rajagopal makes good use of the Internet to connect with her family abroad. PHOTO: S. SIVA SARAVANAN
Seventy-five year old Vedavalli Ramaswamy swallowed the lump in her throat and wiped her tears as she watched her grandson graduating from college at Dallas, Texas, thousands of miles away. She had never in her wildest dreams thought she would be able to do that.
But here she was in Coimbatore, in the comfort of her home, watching her beloved Vasu as he marched up the stage and received his degree. For her, it was nothing short of a miracle.
Web moms
Meera Rajagopal, well past forty, is a little more techno-savvy. An economics graduate, she writes regularly and is interested in the happenings around the world. And, she has children and grandchildren in the U.S.. What better way to keep in touch than via the Internet?
Meera's husband, Air Commodore Rajagopal, is also familiar with Internet jargon and their PC is kitted out with all the gizmos that enable them to watch their son and his family while they chat on the Web, exchange photographs and do a whole lot of other things. Unlike some others of her generation who barely know how to switch on their PCs, Meera has taken the trouble of attending a computer course that has taught her the basics and a little more that helps her keep in touch with her family.
Perfect companion
She is not alone. With more and more children moving abroad in search of better job prospects, mothers have found the Internet just perfect to keep in touch with their little ones, never mind initial hiccups.
Many have even got over their dislike for typed-out letters after realising this is the best way to keep in touch. Varada Prasad, who is touching 70, was rather alarmed when a message suddenly appeared on her computer screen, saying `You have performed an illegal operation'! "It took me a long time to forgive the PC for sending rude messages to me, but now we have made up," she laughs.
Varada has also had messages disappearing on her, and long letters being swallowed up without a trace! But she has a daughter living abroad and since snail mail is virtually out and telephone calls are prohibitively expensive, the PC is her best bet.
Other interests
Forty-something Kaushalya is not a great fan of the Internet either but with a teenage son who is bound for college in the US, the Internet has been a great help, allowing her to visit the websites of shortlisted colleges. "Not only that, I could even virtually visit the college classrooms, their dining rooms and even find out what is on the menu for the week," she says, amazed. Though most of them primarily go online to chat with their family, they do try to browse the Net. Fresh from reading Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code, an intrigued Kaushalya recently went online to find out more about the mysterious Opus Dei.
But, there are those unimpressed by cyber-technology. A nine yard-saree clad maami insists she will embrace the Internet only if it turned smart enough to transport murukkus and laddus to her grandson in the U.S.!
While our maami might have to wait just a tad longer for that to happen, the Internet has enabled many women, especially senior citizens, to stay in touch.
Without regular bulletins from children who are increasingly living farther and farther away from home, it would be only so easy to get left behind and be forgotten.
Printer friendly
page
Send this article to Friends by
E-Mail
Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
|
