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Hello again,
Unless you have been living under a rock, you would be aware that the world is changing in phenomenal ways. We are a generation that thrives on technology. Everything is online. You can read your books on a Nook or a Kindle, browse your favorite magazine on the publisher's website, find any information you need in a few seconds, et cetera et cetera. This, like every other development America has had over the years, has pros and cons.
I believe this eruption of technological advances has the most impact on my generation. When I was a kid and my family was planning on going anywhere, I would either grab my favorite book or a stuffed animal to play with along the ride. At restaurants, I would color on the menu provided for me, and spend all my summer nights racing scooters or playing kickball in the street with the neighborhood kids. All of these things are very rare now, and it makes me sad. I will go out to dinner with my family, and while walking through the restaurant to our table, I will see kids younger then 10 with their noses in an iPad or iPhone. Middle schoolers have smart phones, giving them access to all the dangerous places the internet offers that they may not be educated on. And it's really, really scary.
I keep myself pretty updated on technology, but there is one thing I refuse to change, and that is my method of reading. Reading on an e-reader will never give you the comforting smell of paper and print, the satisfaction of turning the last page. It terrifies me that one day books will no longer exist, and instead everything will be converted to words on a screen. It frightens me even more for the generation of my children. If I choose to raise my children old fashioned, will they be made fun of? Will they despise me because I'm going to encourage them to read real books, to go outside and play, and to not expose them to technology so early on like parents do today? The whole evolution of it is absolutely frightening.
This brings me onto a more specific topic, which is modern love. No girl should believe that the most she deserves from a guy is for him to make her his woman crush Wednesday on Twitter. I know chivalry still exists, but I worry it is becoming less important the more our generation advances. The grand gesture for a guy to do today is "slide in to your DMs" or "retweet your selfie". People are stuck in this vortex of attention on social media, and will do almost anything to get it. They'll disrespect themselves and deviate from who they truly are to grasp the attention of their followers, and if they don't get it they feel like they aren't as worthy of the girl who got 100+ favorites on a picture of herself. Twitter is dangerous, especially for the self esteem. Your feed is a constant flow of guys doing cute things for a girl with "Relationship Goals" as the caption, or a beautiful girl with people in awe over how perfect she is. Don't let this phase you. You are not any less amazing just because you aren't "popular" on Twitter. If people are saying things over Twitter, especially in a negative way, just feel sorry that they are too cowardly to say it to someone's face.
This is because people hide behind their phones, and often say things over text message or the internet that they wouldn't say to someone face to face, because it's just easier that way. Problems aren't being solved with human interaction anymore. Miscommunication is a popular issue in relationships, because the context of something you say can so easily be misconstrued. The tone of a person's voice gives so much clarity into what they are trying to say to you, but obviously, a text message has no tone, only the words that are in front of you.
Why do we feel the need to be glued to our phones? Are we going to miss that much if we turn our phones off for just a day and go do something exciting? I watch movies and see the classic "guy throws girl in the pool" bit and think to myself, "That can't even happen anymore because people have their phone in their pocket at all times." I'll see couples out on a date, and they won't even be talking to each other, instead they'll be checking their phones, maybe share a word or two, then go back to seeing what's new on Twitter. Even I'm guilty of this, and I hate it. I like to think of technology as a safety blanket for today's society. People feel naked when they don't have their phones with them. If they aren't in the mood to interact with someone, they simply go on their phone and pretend that they are doing something important. How is this going to affect things like job interviews, public speaking skills, getting to know people, and simply the art of human interaction? Probably not very positively.
Don't get me wrong, there are beautiful benefits to this Technological Revolution. Quite ironically, I wouldn't be able to be writing this post, and getting my voice out on the internet, if it weren't for technology. I don't let it impair my ability to communicate in person, though, and I think that is starting to become an apparent problem in people, especially teenagers, today.
Love is so much more than what you see on the internet. People's lives look perfect because that's the point. Why would they post about things like losing their jobs, having a terrible fight with their significant other, or just all together having a crappy day? Some people do post about these kinds of these, but psychologically I think it's because they want someone to see it, feel bad for them, and tell them that it's going to be okay.
Make a person ask you out face to face. Don't settle for a text message or Snapchat. If you see an argument begin to erupt, ask to meet up in person, or at least advance to the next step and solve it over a phone call. The best form of love is the one that is silent. The one that you don't need to tell the world how great it is, because it's your happy, little secret that you only want to share with your significant other.
We need to preserve the skill of communication. Emotion, tone, and body language are all important aspects of truly understanding what a person is trying to say. If technology continues to rise, and more people begin to rely on it, the world is going to be one Twitter argument away from disaster.
Embrace technology, but don't let it take over your life.
Until next time,
