Technology has come in a long way in a very short period of time.

For Christmas my wife and I bought my mom an iPad. My 93-year-old grandma got one recently and has taken to Facebook like a fish to water.

We figured my mom could set aside her 10-year-old laptop and would enjoy the ease of an iPad.

She could connect via email, Facebook and surf the Internet all from the comfort of her favorite recliner.

What we didn’t count on was an antiquated router that wouldn’t connect to new fangled technology. After a week and a few calls to her Internet service provider, she was finally able to connect her iPad to the outside world.

My mom had a blood clot in her lung in August and sitting next to her bed I made a call to my wife using Apple’s Facetime app.

My mom was surprised to see my wife smiling back at me and was amazed that I could do that from my phone.

We live 800 miles from my mom and with her health failing it is important to stay in touch.

Being able to read facial expressions helps to communicate empathy and understand her level of apprehension.

Saturday night my wife’s phone rang and it was my mom trying to Facetime with us.

She was smiling as big as I’ve seen her smile in recent memory.

Just 10 years ago making a face-to-face phone call was the stuff of science fiction.

Technology has grown leaps and bounds and the things we imagine are becoming more commonplace.

Soon an iPad will be made of malleable material that can be folded and slid into a pocket.

Before long technology will have advanced so far that distance is no longer a factor in travel. For now, a trip to see my parents is still 800 miles and 12 hours away.

With Facetime, it’s only as far away as an arm’s length.

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Paul Barry is the managing editor and can be reached by email at paul.barry@vicksburgpost.com or by phone at 601-636-4545 ext. 123.