Once upon a time, it was the radio. Elders had to be given written directions on how to switch it on and listen to music or news. There were some who quickly picked it up and gave tips to youngsters on listening to Ceylon Radio instead of AIR.

Then came the television that captured the fancy of young and old alike. Elders had to be given written directions on how to switch it on, tune to the channel of their choice (even though there existed only one channel). There were some who quickly picked it up and even gave tips to youngsters.

Soon there emerged many different gadgets, out of which the computer and mobile phone were perhaps the most popular. Elders were given written instructions to use them, to make calls, to connect to the Internet, to send emails. There were some who quickly picked it up and gave tips to youngsters, as to whether Nokia was more rugged than a Samsung, or if Norton was better at virus-protection than McAfee.

I wonder what the omnipresent gadget is going to be, in my … Time.