In the past couple of weeks I have spent a ton of time babysitting, watching kids between the ages of two and 12, and one thing that I have been appalled with more than anything is how absorbed they are with their phones and general technology.
Lots of these kids are still in elementary school, in third grade even, and already have the iPhone 6 plus. When I was their age (sounding like my mother here), I was counting down the days until 6th grade, at which time I would finally procure the infamous Juke (for those of you that don't know what this is, please Google "Juke cellphone"). There is no doubt that technology has a number of benefits: easy and quick communication, modes for getting into and maintaining online relationships, and even educational advantages in some specific areas. But the sad truth is, that even with such benefits, the downfalls are increasingly beginning to outweigh these positives -- especially when it comes to the reality of friendships and romantic relationships, that is, relationships in the real world.
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Yet another sad truth that I've come to realize through watching these kids is that my friends and I, and nearly everyone else in this world, are the same exact way. We all fall victim to the allure of our iPhones, no matter how little we'd like to admit it. And this "addiction," or whatever you want to call it, has just about ruined some of the most genuine and sincere aspects of our society -- one of these aspects being the ability to talk to people and have actual conversations in real time. Now, don't get me wrong -- I love to text and Snapchat just as much as anyone else, probably even more, but that doesn't mean I fail to realize that they could never substitute or make up for talking to this person behind the screen.
And this is just one problem out of so, so many. There are hundreds of unsaid "rules" that come along with technology, especially in the world of teenagers in high school and college. My favorite is what I'd call "the waiting game," where boys and girls purposefully wait a certain amount of time to respond to a text or Snapchat or the like, all to display an illusion of "playing hard to get" or preventing themselves from appearing clingy or annoying.
It is unspoken rules such as these which continue to blur the lines between an online, false reality, and the real world. How about actually responding to a text when you first see it? Or not calculating how long you should take to respond to someone's snapchat based on their response time? How about just in general putting the phone down for a couple minutes when you are out with your friends and having a face-to-face, technology-free talk?
Just the other night I had the opportunity to, for the first time in what seems like years, sit down with friends and have a dinner free of cellphones (since the restaurant we were at strongly looks down upon phone use when dining). In the two hours we were at the table eating I learned more about the personalities and lives of the people I was with than I would have in a week, and this was because everyone had each other's undivided attention at every moment.
There were no distractions and no awkward silences, and because of this I had one of the nicest, most real and memorable evenings. I think a lot of people reading this don't need to be lectured or told that these problems are evident and growing stronger each day. Most people already know this. However, I do think it is necessary to bring attention to the fact that these habits can change, and when they do your life will be the better because of it.
