Dial-A-Friend

When I was a kid in Los Angeles, someone got the novel idea of starting up what was then called "a switchboard". To use it, someone would call in, leave their phone number and someone would call back. It was random. You never knew who you would get and that's what made it kind of fun.

I used to sit in my bedroom, call the switchboard and wait to see who would call back. If I remember correctly, I spent a lot of time talking with some guy from South Africa. It was interesting to get to know him. We'd talk every few days and then like most of those things, it suddenly stopped.

It always seemed like a good idea on the surface. It was a natural outgrowth of the hippie times when it was all about instant connection and spreading love around. I think they might have had one in San Francisco, too.

I'm not so sure it's a good idea for someone to put his or her phone number out on the Internet where people have access to it all over the world. I'm not brave enough to do it. That's for sure!

Yet I do know there's a need for that kind of thing. Twenty years ago (or so), I volunteered on a Suicide and Crisis Hotline. It never ceased to amaze me how many people depended on hearing a voice on the other end of the phone, even if it was someone unknown. It was a safety net. It was a sure thing. Someone could call in the weesmas and someone would pick up the phone, willing to listen.

There was a news report yesterday about a 20-year-old kid in Mass who decided to put his phone number out on YouTube for anyone who wanted to talk. He says he just wants to "be there" for anyone who might need someone to talk to...

Needless to say, he's had thousands of phone calls from all over the world.

His heart seems to be in the right place. As he said, "Some people's own mothers won't take the time to sit down and talk with them and have a conversation. But some stranger on YouTube will. After six seconds, you're not a stranger anymore, you're a new kid I just met."

So... what do you think?


Peace,


~Chani