What is your real world? Let’s do an introspection. I am doing it, anyone can do and everyone should do at least once in their life. Sooner we do the better will be our prospects for a more rewarding life we all wish to have.
The introspection for me is to analyse “why do I prefer to stay much of my time away from the virtual world of technology with all my electronic devices?” On few occasions I felt like I am getting carried away with these devices with too much addiction. What made me think this all let me explain with an example from my personal experience.
I used to prefer public transport system over any other mode and travel frequently. Have you ever noticed what people love to do during their journey if you are a keen observer? I just love to observe people without venturing into their privacy. At the beginning of the journey you can find most in a happy mood. You can find few people reading newspaper/books, few others having some official/personal discussion, few with their own thoughts in pensive mood and few more people simply enjoying the weather and landscapes outside. Among youngsters you will mostly find people listening to music, watching a video or playing games like candy crush saga.
Suddenly after sometime we found ourselves caught in a traffic and our seemingly thirty minutes journey expected to take two hours now. Now just watch the change in mood of the same set of people looking quite happy a while back. You can find youngsters quite restless blaming the system, the road conditions, the government and so on. They are just fed up with their games/songs/videos and looking out to do something more but in vain. They just can’t find anything better to do. This happens when we used to spend time alone. This is the truth among most youngsters these days. They just don’t like to mingle with others and develop sound relationship.
On the other hand you can find little more aged people in the working class at more peace of mind. The more senior citizens are even at more peace busy with their discussion as if nothing really happened. They don’t show any sign of discomfort or hurry to reach their destination. It’s their maturity and conditioning they learned to live. They don’t fear to talk to a stranger sitting next to them and make friends. I am quite surprised to find what values we lost in this present generation.
Over exposure to technology may be causing you compromise on your personal space. Youngsters these days found to spend more time with their electronic gadgets rather than spending useful time with their family members and friends. Is it a good sign for our personal development? I am asking all this question as our social development has direct dependency.
I have been hearing this question a long time now whether rapid advancement in modern day technologies a boon or bane for human development. In this world of information technology powered by high speed internet, I have no doubt technology has many blessings for us when we can get vital information on our finger tips without wasting much time. I remember the days when I used to stand waiting in long queues to pay my electricity bill or phone bill. It’s no more a hassle these days for me.
There is yet another side to this truth. When I do a comparison I discover few more truths laughing at me on what I get and what I lost in this process. When I realise this I feel like even wasting time at times is more useful when we have the time to share our feelings and express ourselves. I am happy to discover at some corner of my heart the much needed humane touch is still alive that inspires me to live and show others the right direction to live a more fulfilling life.
I am not going to discard the use of technology for all that i used to do manually before like going to a bank to pay my credit card bill. I am doing that easily now on my smartphone using a banking application. But you can still find people following the same old approach by their choice. I too follow the same practice at times when my father asks me to pay the electricity bill. I used to take a copy of the bill and go to the nearest payment counter. Standing there waiting with others is simply a very different experience. It’s a conscious choice made to spend time there whenever I get an opportunity to spend time with family at my home town. This is the time when I have no work pressure have all the luxury to spend time on what I like to do.
If we find older people preferring the traditional way in their approach over the modern technology friendly approach, it could be a conscious choice by them as they want to live a life they want and don’t want a compromise on that. I don’t fully agree with youngsters today what they explain as the primary reason. They feel like they are not tech savvy and they don’t want to learn better use of technology as they like to stay in their comfort zone.
Do you agree? How much time you think will they take to learn playing a video game or learn using a smartphone if they find that interesting? We can never understand their emotions unless we experience a similar phase of life they went through. I have asked few questions to myself and sharing with you as it could be applicable in your life. When was the last I wrote a letter on paper and posted to a family member or friend? When was the last I talked to a friend in person rather than wishing her/him over phone or SMS? When did the last time we watched a movie together among all family members rather than watching alone? You may find and add many more questions to this list.
When we think about over exposure, it’s primarily concerned about the usage of technology and it’s impact on our day to day living.
A big question to ask would be how much is enough and at what age? Can we regulate this?
Now I am going to share with you the best part of this article that inspired me to think and write on this topic. This is like a story I received as a message on social media. It touched me and you may feel similar after reading it. Here it goes …
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Worth Reading…Nice message
I had spent an hour in the bank with my dad, as he had to transfer some money. I couldn’t resist myself & asked…
”Dad, why don’t we activate your internet banking?”
”Why would I do that?”
He asked…
”Well, then you won’t have to spend an hour here for things like transfer.
You can even do your shopping online. Everything will be so easy!”
I was so excited about initiating him into the world of Net banking.
He asked ”If I do that, I won’t have to step out of the house?
”Yes, yes”! I said. I told him how even grocery can be delivered at door now and how amazon delivers everything!
His answer left me tongue-tied.
He said ”Since I entered this bank today, I have met four of my friends, I have chatted a while with the staff who know me very well by now.
You know I m alone…
this is the company that I need. I like to get ready and come to the bank. I have enough time, it is the physical touch that I crave.
Two years back I got sick, The store owner from whom I buy fruits, came to see me and sat by my bedside and cried.
When your Mom fell down few days back while on her morning walk, our local grocer saw her and immediately got his car to rush her home as he knows where I live.
Would I have that ‘human’ touch if everything became online?
Why would I want everything delivered to me and force me to interact with just my computer?
I like to know the person that I’m dealing with and not just the ‘seller’. It creates bonds/relationships.
Does Amazon deliver all this as well?”’
Technology isn’t life ..
Spend time with people .. Not with devices.
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Do you have a second opinion?
I’d like you to share with me your thoughts on this topic and share this article with others in your circle if you like it. I enjoy my time reading and writing. I wish you do have a great time writing and sharing your experience.
