Tuesday, May 19, 2015

Look Up From Your Phone

Living life in the now is harder than we think. There's blogs and posts and Facebook and 365Project - all on the net - and yet we have all these friends and people following our goings-on in our lives; only to find we're so lonely in reality.

When we turn off our computers, phones and iPads and look around our homes, they're often empty or filled with people who are our family; and yet they're complete strangers to us, simply because we don't communicate with each other in the old-fashioned ways.

In the times when of Wi-Fi and Broadband internet, I have found the world has become a much smaller place. Instead of sending a hand-written letter to somebody, we send an e-mail instead. A photograph is easily posted online for so many people to see - and for the most part, we never get to meet them, and some of them, we don't know who they are.

And then there's this short film/ballad I have seen do the rounds on the net, and it's come around again... and I wish to show it to you all. 

I grew up in a time where I'd spend most of my afternoons and weekends out with my neighbour's kids, running around and playing. We'd be on our bikes, climbing trees, playing soccer, swimming and going to the park up the road or skateboarding at the local shopping centre because it would be closed and car park would be empty.

Now, kids are sitting glued to their televisions playing games, to their computers, phones and other devices while their parents seem to think that this is what it takes to bring them up - just to stick a recently invented device in front of them and leave them to it while they themselves are addicted to the glowing screen.

I'm a writer and have become an addict to this screen.  However, it's because I'm a writer I have to change my work ethics to keep up with the times, to make sure I'm not left behind in this world of publishing.

Also in my life, I get in and do other things to keep myself active.  There's volunteer work, painting, gardening, cooking, craft and arts and I also love to refurbish old furniture.  When I do get away from the computer and the devices, my brain feels freer and I enjoy working with my hands more. There's a certain freedom to being able to be away from the new technology... and until you make sure you do this a few times a week, you don't realise how much you actually are addicted to it.  

So, here's the link to the ballad about it. I hope you look up from your devices in the next day or so and take in our world... because really, we're missing out on some pretty wonderful things out there.

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