Should We Unplug to Prevent a Social Disaster?
/{Hi lovelies- I am trying to get on a regular, consistent posting schedule. So far, summer has been a little crazy but will hopefully have something nailed down soon! Thank you so much for following along!} After a lovely week on the island of Kauai with my husband and some good family friends, I've had some serious time to think.
About everything.
My husband is super anti social media. I mean, he literally thinks it's the devil, choosing not to have any of it. When ever he makes a comment I usually laugh it off and continue thumbing through my phone, posting photos to Instagram and tweeting the latest and greatest while simultaneously checking my facebook.
If you are ever out in public and you just stop and look around, you will see what I'm just starting to notice; people are constantly gazing at their phones, thumbing through their apps, just 'killing time' until the next stimulating thing comes along.
I often wonder if my husband is on to something.
I wouldn't exactly go as far as calling social media 'the devil' though. It is the way my husband and I rekindled an old flame we had years prior. However, I do think he has some valid points. I've been thinking a lot about how my childhood and teen years were so different than those growing up in the world today, with technology overload, always having to have a smart phone or ipad or some other kind of gadget in their hands.
While we were on the island of Kauai this past week we took a catamaran tour of the Napali Coast. There were about 30-35 people on this boat, a few of these people were kids. As my husband was coming back from the bathroom he plopped down next to me on the big trampoline up front and turned to me with a look of mixed emotions.
"There is a boy sitting on the back of the boat with his head in some video game." He said, a look of sadness flashed across his face. "I don't get it. We are on the coast of Hawaii and this kid is too engrossed in a video game to even notice how lucky he is to be on this boat surrounded by all of this."
I sat there, soaking in what he had just said and started to reflect on my own childhood. When I was younger we only had one phone and it was attached to the wall. We actually had to get up from whatever we were doing, walk to kitchen where it was perched every so carefully on the wall. It was blue at one point then we upgraded to a cream-colored one. If my brother wanted to play a video game he had turn on our TV, plug-in the Atari and wasn't allowed to do so if the sun was shining outside.
Oh how the times have changes.
Coincidentally, as I was looking at facebook the other afternoon I came across a link on Buzz Feed that made me laugh out loud for its raw, unadulterated, and kind of sad truth. Ultimately, this feed made me ponder: what is social media, and even more importantly, technology, doing to us and future generations ?
{Link to the Buzz Feed page found here}
I think that social media AND the advances in technology can be an awesome thing. It's great for businesses and reconnects old friends and helps you stay in touch. It has probably rekindled many romances like mine and I don't know about you, but I can keep up to date with some many blogs and inspiring people because I can see what they post to their feed.
However, in my humble little mind, I wonder: Have we crossed the line of no return? Are we damaging our social skills, our manners, our overall way of life?
I've spent the last week thinking and talking about these very questions with my husband and seeing the above post on Buzz Feed made a light turn on in my brain. Something clicked in a big way.
I'm not saying I'm perfect, I've probably over shared on more than one occasion or posted something because I wanted to be perceived in a certain light, but there was something about scrolling through those photos that made my heart ache a little, made me sad for future generations.
As I mentioned above, I do think that many advances in technology have opened us up to more and better opportunities in life. We can gain so much inspiration from others on many of these social media sites.
What scares me is the disconnect I've noticed in people. The lack of communicating in person and showing true, real emotions. I mean, if it doesn't involve an emoticon then how will anyone know how I am truly feeling?
I've also noticed that people have a hard time looking others in the eye while talking with them and to feel a real, true, deeper connection, you have to look people in the eyes.
I've been with people who, when I'm in the middle of talking with them, they start thumbing through their phone. I'm sure I've even done this before. It's become such a habit for all of us that we don't even notice we are doing it anymore.
I can be just as guilty of pulling out my phone while waiting in a grocery store line or while waiting at a red light. I've noticed that within myself, I have a hard time in those minutes of transition, of stillness and it pains me.
I think it's time we start a bigger conversation around this subject. We, as the parents and role models of the future, need to lead by example. We need to put away our phones at the end of the day, turn off our ipads and computers and tune into how we feel when we are with others, our friends and family. Yeah, it's awesome to take photos of special moments along the way but if we are constantly pausing for that photo opp then we are missing the moment completely.
I hope this doesn't come across as judgmental because really, I'm not trying to be that way. As I've admitted above, I've done it all too. My hope is that this gets you thinking about ways we can be better role models, show others what it really means to connect with another person. Look them in the eyes, listen to what they are saying, and be totally available for life's awesome, once in a lifetime moments.
Let's be present together.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on this! Do you feel that we've gotten away from truly connecting with others because of the advances in technology or always needing to post special moments on social media? Leave a comment below and lets start this conversation!
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