We live in a wired world…or should I say wireless.
Our techno gizmos, gadgets, and games. They’re ubiquitous.
Why just the other day I was at Barnes &Noble—I know what an archaic concept frequenting a book store when Kindle is so readily available not to mention available at the touch of an iPad or tablet—when a frantically texting teen sprouting earbuds from her head plowed me over.
Literally.
I waited for an “excuse me,” which I never got, let alone any form of eye contact.
But I am pretty sure her phone bleeped bah-ding, signaling an incoming text as she just kept on moving on while I was left to pick up the toppled display table books.
A kindly, matronly clerk rushed to my assistance.
Returning the books to their rightful places, she solemnly uttered—“What’s wrong with kids today? So impersonal and cold like those technology devices attached to their limbs. I am glad I am old.”
Which got me thinking—has our dependency on technology thwarted our humanity? Have we lost the basic concept of human interaction, manners, and social protocols? Have we become so connected technologically that we are disconnected interpersonally?
Most of all I wondered, “has humanity become so unplugged, that we’re totally oblivious to the fact?”
Like it or not, fact is instant gratification and over-stimulation is the new norm. Our world, our culture as a whole, suffers from OCD and ADD. And I am pretty sure that Ritalin or Adderall is not gonna fix it. But it’s not just the kids. Not sure about you, but I know that I get lost when the power goes out, when my laptop refuses to boot, when my landline is on the fritz or worse when my iPhone cannot connect to the Internet. I panic at the prospect of being shut off and cut off.
Which got me thinking further….wonder how my spirit feels about all of this? Does it feel cut off and shut off from the human aspect of the human condition? What does that aspect of me feel when I am so consumed with the rat race and the technology that aides my quest in that race that I ignore my spirit’s basic needs. If so, how do fix this? I am pretty sure I can’t call Tech Support on this one.
So what are the spirit’s basic needs; how do we find balance? Easy. We simplify and get back down to the basics:
- Breathe: Slow down and meditate even if only for 15 minutes.
- Unplug: Pick one hour per day and shut it down. No TV, no computer, no iPhone; no tech.
- Listen: To the sound of falling water, or the wind blowing, or best of all to a loved one’s words.
- Journal: Pen to paper, stream of consciousness. Just write whatever you feel.
- Move: Not to a new address, but your body. Take a walk. Go to the gym. Dance. Just get up off your butt and away from the computer and do something.
- Connect: With others via a real conversation.
- Volunteer: Self-explanatory.
- Touch the Earth: Garden, go to the beach, the mountains, the rivers, the lakes, or whatever is nearest you and connect with nature.
- Observe the Stars: Gain perspective of the vastness of it all.
- Laugh: See the humor, irony, and joy in life.
Now I am going to take my own advice and take a walk, unplugged of course.
Read more posts by Alison Blasko here. Alison blogs for JenningsWire.
