To the last generation in the 1900s.....

We are so many things: generation Z, igeneration, the unknowns with characteristics of millennials or post-millennials. Honestly, the list just goes on.

Some people think they are a millennial because they were born before 2000, but that is not true. It is a complicated understanding because we all have similar characteristics, but that generation has moved on. Some would say we are the unknowns because they just haven't discovered a lot about us yet. It's only because many people focused on the characteristics of millennials so much and study them. The millennials have been the talk of all the generations for the past 40 years, but we have come to the next point. We are generation Z.

A distinct thing about us is that we were born in a time that isn't perfect. One major historical event that happened in the beginning of our lifetime was 9/11, but we were so young barley any of us remember it. This just goes to show the "major points" the U.S has experienced.

We never experienced the growth of the country in the economy or anything of that nature; maybe just the debt. We just see the major growth of the technology.

Sometimes we take what we have for granted because of the technological world we have grown up in. We all get caught up in the daily grind rather than take the time to count our blessings.

Another name for our generation, that calls us out big time, is the "igeneration" which means the interactive generation. We try so hard to have all the social media apps to see what our closest friends and family are doing at all times.

We can talk to anyone at the tips of our fingertips. The downside to this connection through our phones is how unconnected we are when we look up. There isn't an urge to go see family or visit friends far away anymore because we can see what they are doing on the internet.

Our parents, grandparents, siblings, or best friends won't truly have our undivided attention because our phone or watch will buzz and distract us; we look down to check something for a split second. We think we can multi-task, and maybe we can, but it actually just divides our attention for certain periods of time.

We have changed the world for our parents and grandparents too because social media is the only way to "connect" with family and friends these days. Now, everyone sees social media as a positive, convenient way to connect, but we can't blindly melt into the grind of relying heavily on social media. Since we do this 24/7, it has caused our attention span to become shorter and shorter.

We can't even watch a full movie on Netflix without checking our phone. Or maybe, we are binge watching our favorite show, there are so many times our brain just gets "bored," and we scroll through Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or Snapchat stories.

Being SO connected with everyone on social media takes away our attention from the people right in front of us, and it's hurting our attention span in general.

Now don't get me wrong, I love us, and there are so many amazing things about us. We were one of the first generations to be born into a world that is fully technological. We are great, and America would not be the same without us. We just need to open our eyes, look up, and realize what we are doing/getting caught up in.

I urge all of us to try to be more connected when it counts for the people we truly care about.

Sincerely, another (un)connected person just trying to be connected with life