A Child of the Millennium
By: Bridgit Bowden

             On New Year’s Eve 1999, I wrote myself a letter so that I could remember what life was like before the year 2000.  Because I was a mere seven years old, it was fairly simple, reading:

               Tonight I am watching TV. Tonight is December 31,1999. Tomorrow will be the new millennium. I am in second grade. My favorite color is green. I will have been a kid for part of two millenniums.  
 
               Since then, my life has changed immensely.  Technology has greatly influenced my life, and I have witnessed many significant historical events.  When I wrote that letter on December 31, 1999, I had no Idea that my life would change so much. 

               One of the biggest changes I have seen is in technology.  In 1999, my family had one (brick) cell phone, and we were the only family I knew that had (dial up) internet.  Now, every member of my family has a cell phone equipped with instant messaging and texting.  And, all of these devices are small enough to fit in the palm of my hand.  In our house, we have three laptop computers and a wireless network to connect to.  In 1999, I would have never dreamed that I could bring a computer anywhere in my house and be able to access anything in the world. 

               Technology has also changed my social life.  While I used to talk on the house phone (which of course, I couldn’t do if someone was using the internet!), I can now instant message my friends and family whenever I want to.  And forget ever having to make a long-distance phone call from a land line now, all my friends that live far away can easily reached through Facebook. 

               In the last decade, I have witnessed many important historical events.  In 2001, I was in fourth grade, and I was shocked along with the rest of the population when the country was attacked on September 11th.   Since then, our nation has been involved in a complicated war.  In 2008, I watched attentively when the first African-American president was elected.  And of course, all of these events have been brought to my living room and laptop instantly by the amazing technological advancements made by CNN and other news networks in the last decade.          

               Looking back, many things about me are similar to what they were in 1999.  My favorite color is still green, and I still love to sing and dance.  However, the life I lead now is incredibly different from the life I led then.  The new technology and momentous historical events I have witnessed in the last decade have changed my life for good.