As this is my last semester as an undergraduate in college, I have been engaging in a lot of thinking about how to make this my best semester yet. By best semester, I do not mean purely in the academic sense. I want to use my time wisely to savor Hope College and all it has to offer. Hope College is a very special place, and I would venture to say the experience it provides is vastly different than most colleges across the country.

What has made this journey so fulfilling is its people. Hope may not rank as one of the top liberal arts programs in the nation, but it consistently produces the type of graduates any company or business would be lucky to have on their team. This is because Hope instills in its graduates a desire to give back and an understanding of human beings and our needs. Hope graduates comprehend what it means to follow in the path of Jesus and show compassion in the most extenuating of circumstances. In a competitive and increasingly globalized work environment, these are the traits that will set leaders apart. It is not just enough to be intelligent and creative. An understanding of people and their vulnerabilities is essential in an effective leader.

This leads into an obstacle I have encountered in making this my best semester. As great as Hope College students are, they are not exempt from the technology addiction that has plagued our society. I do not want to suggest that technology has not vastly improved our lives in miraculous ways, but it has also created a gap in intimacy in relationships that is alarming. Smartphones are omnipresent, as people cannot go without checking their emails or social networking notifications. We live in a state of constant feedback and among a virtual world that falls considerably short of reality. Despite this, it is increasingly difficult to separate our virtual and actual existences.

It is especially clear among my peers that technology is addicting. Everywhere you look, a young person is glued to their smart phone, oftentimes oblivious to what is going on around them. It has become somewhat of a hazard to walk when one has to worry about being run over by a smartphone-toting millennial. However, my biggest concern when it comes to our obsession with the virtual world is that it removes us from the here and now. It is impossible to appreciate life’s moments when one is consumed with documenting every second on their smartphone.

The other evening, I was out to dinner with some of my friends and an alumnus. I was looking forward to hearing about her experiences outside of the realm of Hope College. Since I would soon be in her shoes, I wanted to know how her adjustment was progressing. Unfortunately, there was little time for her to share about her new life, as she was constantly barraged with requests for pictures. Now, pictures are not bad. They are actually a wonderful way to document memories, but there is usually a time and a place for them. After that, the camera is put away. With the advent of smartphones with advanced cameras and the plethora of social media applications that utilize them, pictures have become just another way to exist in the virtual world. It has become more important to show you are having fun on social media platforms than to actually have fun. Instead of living in the moment, we have become infatuated with creating one.

Social media has also gone a long way in destroying any semblance of chivalry that once existed in the dating world. When my dad was young and had a crush on a young lady, he had to pick up the phone and call her home. Oftentimes, he had to talk to the girl’s mother or father before he could reach her. This took courage and a strong desire to take the crush out on an actual date. It was not for the faint of heart. Fast forward to the age of Tinder and other social media sites that promote the worst examples of keyboard warriors. It is troublingly easy to send crude messages or pictures in this virtual world and then not follow through on actually dating the person. This is an example of the evolution of our world into a place where fewer people engage in serious relationships, let alone get married. Social media promotes casual relationships and those lacking in intimacy. It truly is a whole new world.

As I strive to cherish these last few moments at Hope College, I cannot help but struggle with some of the problems that technology has generated. They are all around me and within the palm of my hand. I am a believer that it is never too late to change some of the unpleasant effects of the social media age. The easiest way to do this is to unplug from the virtual world. As uncomfortable as it may be at first, it is worth it to find the worth in God’s purest creation.