Monday, May 4, 2015

So Near Yet So Far - The Curse (?!) of Smartphones?

A couple of days ago, happened to notice a sad sight at the restaurant, during lunch. On the table next to me were four people - a couple and two children. All through the course of the meal, the couple were discussing some family gossip, while the children were both stuck to their smartphones with the headphones on, paying no heed whatsoever to one another. If they weren't sitting in the same table, or if they were seen in a different setting like a bus or park, you would have thought of them as strangers and not as belonging to the same family. It was only when they were leaving did they all speak to one another.

Image Source - GoogleSimilar to this was another incident when I had a couple of youngsters share the table with me in a restaurant. Only when it came to paying the bill did they talk to one another, having been immersed in their mobile phones all through the supper.

Are we becoming addicted to technology to the extent of letting it dominate our lives? Are we moving farther from the people close to us while trying to stay in touch with those far away?!

To recall the words of an old person, who once spoke to me during a train journey and sadly said, "During our days, we used to talk to strangers in the journey. We used to form friendships, some of which went on to stay for a long time. But you young people these days plug your ears with headphones, glue your eyes to phones and stay aloof from others. You are all growing further apart than how it was during our days. No wonder the society is filled with troubles and hatred!'

Happy New Year 2024!

As the first Sun of 2024 went back home, I was busy preparing my new diary and journal, packing off the old ones to their crammed space insi...