“Hey, wyd tn?”
“nm, hbu bby?”
“ntm bc I was wondering bout u”
“k, pick u up @ 8”
This is how people communicate these days, by texting and not using actual words, it’s like the English language has become extinct. Whether or not you text like this, I think it’s hard to say that average person does not rely on their cell phone for their source of communication. Which is fine sometimes, but when that becomes an all the time thing, us humans lose our sense of conversation.
Nowadays, most people wouldn’t go and speak to that cute boy across the street – they’d stalk him on social media first and maybe start liking his pictures until it eventually felt like time to start a conversation – online of course. Only to realize he wasn’t as cute as he seemed. All of which you could have figured out by one moment of face to face interaction. It’s like the people of today’s society do not know how to speak in person, that they do not enjoy social interaction with people they love or strangers.
I don’t want you thinking I’m a hypocrite because I, too, did have a cell phone at one point and was on it all the time, but I have started to realize how deep we are buried under these little screens. I recently destroyed my phone – not on purpose – and so I’ve been phoneless for two weeks now.
These past weeks have been some of my most productive, most happy and successful weeks I’ve had in a long time. Not only do I not have a form of quick, online communication, I am also stopped from spending countless hours on social media – seeing the things I wish I never saw.
Before we go any further, I want to say the first few days were torture – I didn’t know what to do with my life and a few tears were definitely shed. My life was depending on my iPhone. Although the more I think about it, almost everyone is dependent on their cellular device. We take it with us everywhere we go, we use it while waiting in lines, we do not understand how to use a map because we do not need to, and we spend more time on these devices than we do on ourselves.
I am ever so happy that my phone broke. I’ve been able to live my life without a phone and it has been one of the greatest lessons I’ve learned yet – a great time period of learning and experiencing new things.
While having a phone I would go out and spend time in nature, doing the things I like but always responding to that Snapchat or text because I had it on me. What I didn’t realize until now is that those memories have holes within the image inside my head, that makes me feel completely blank. I missed what I went there for in the first place. When I go out hiking now, I take in the scenery, I watch the animals and I focus on where I am in life and just my surroundings – it is so nice.
Being phoneless has been one of the greatest lessons I’ve learned to date. It is now time for me to bring back actual communication in my life, to learn that there’s more to life than what the iPhone sees. To connect with people through face to face interaction and to once and for all stop caring about whether or not I got a message back.
I am determined to live life with the thought of what will not matter in three years does not deserve another three seconds and that is my exact plan with my new phone.
I’ll make every second count but the only times I’ll be on my phone from here on out are when I truly need it. I believe this is a great way to change the way some people look at life and to start creating an actual change in conversation. To make people comfortable with interacting face to face, enough of this screen to screen communication – let’s use our words and bring back the true emotion behind the English language. I think it’ll do everyone good, so try it.
Go and speak to that stranger or that friend whom you only text and see what they’re really like. It’ll open your eyes to new people, new opportunities and the way you live your life. Believe me when I say it’s changed mine. Good luck and let’s talk soon – face to face of course.
Featured image via Jonathan Borba on Unsplash
