The last thing she needed was yet another gadget – but then again…
It didn’t take long for my daughter to bring up her favourite subject. I’d only just cleared the table when she started.
‘We’re worried, Mum. We don’t like to think of you living in this house on your own. I wish you’d move in with us.’
‘Thanks, Susan. I’m grateful for the offer, but…’ I waved a hand around my familiar living room, ‘I’ve lived here for more than 40 years. I’m not ready to leave.’
‘But what if you had a fall?’ My son-in-law, who had hardly said a word since they arrived, sprang to life. ‘What you need is Alexa. She’d be such a boon.’
For a moment, I had no idea who he was talking about. ‘Sorry? Who’s Alexa?’
‘It’s not actually a she,’ explained Simon. ‘Alexa is a gadget. You can ask it questions, like “What’s on TV?” or “Will it rain tomorrow?” It can make phone calls too.’
Susan clapped her hands. ‘That’s a brilliant idea! If Mum did have a fall, she could ask Alexa to call an ambulance.’
As my family got excited about yet another gadget, I felt more of a dinosaur than usual. Of course I knew what Alexa was. Who didn’t? Foolishly, I’d just assumed Simon was talking about an actual person.
I had a smartphone and a computer, both given to me by my family, but I wasn’t glued to them every minute. Never having learned to type, all that texting and downloading of apps seemed like too much trouble. If I wanted to know something, I’d rather go to the library. If I needed to go somewhere, I’d rather use a map. Besides, I spend enough time staring at screens when I watch TV.
I was about to say exactly that when a brilliant idea occurred to me.
‘Say I agree to have this Alexa thing, will you two stop nagging me to move in with you?’
My daughter nodded. ‘All we want is for you to be safe and happy and well.’
‘Good. In that case, thank you. I’ll give Alexa a try.’
My family wasted no time. They came back the next weekend to set everything up. It looked complicated, so I kept out of the way and let my son-in-law figure everything out.
‘Right,’ said Simon. ‘That’s all done now. Go ahead. Ask it something.’
At first I couldn’t think of anything to ask. I felt silly talking to a machine. I ended up asking the first thing that came into my head. ‘What’s the capital of Lithuania?’ When nothing happened I asked Simon if something was wrong. ‘Doesn’t it know the answer?’
I felt silly talkin
