What are you doing right now? I mean, right at this moment. Did you give a status update on your facebook page in the past hour? No? What is wrong with you?
I am on Facebook….both personally and professionally. Yes, Kevin and I have a Facebook page but I’m not even sure how to use the thing just yet. It’s really odd how we have become so self obsessed. People can let you know what they’re doing every minute of the day. Nancy is baking cookies…Nancy is jumping in the shower…Nancy is going to the bathroom. Do you really believe that everyone cares what you are doing at this very second??? It’s interesting how our gadgets have really changed us. I still remember the day I first saw someone walking and talking on their cell phone through an earpiece. I thought he was talking to me, and then realized he had this little gizmo in his ear and was chatting away. It seemed as though I was intruding on his private space. How dare I look at him strangely while he was loudly talking in public to someone who WASN’T THERE?
It didn’t seem that long ago when I would look at the IPod zombies wandering around ignoring the rest of us as such an oddity. They walk to the store with these wires hanging from their ears, they shop, they read, they work, they go to school, no time to say hi to the people they pass…it’s a huge “Do Not Disturb” sign literally wrapped around their neck. We don’t dare have a moment of silence, time to actually think. No, thinking is a waste of time…must pre-occupy, must concern myself with only the things I enjoy.
I really believe this is what facebook, and IPod, and laptops and blackberry’s have become: A major distraction. I love to go for walks, and I’m amazed how many other people must be plugged in to something while walking. I can’t imagine not hearing the wind, the birds, the sounds of kids laughing. I love the sounds of nature, and I really do love the sound of silence. What are you trying to drown out with your noise?
I’m serious. I’m not some old fuddy duddy. Like I said, I have a facebook page, I have an mp3 player, but I’m learning how to manage them. The music is just for the time on the treadmill…it keeps me pumped and stops me from jumping off out of boredom. The computer is the biggest issue for me. Sometimes I surf and an hour is gone and the dishes aren’t done and I realize what a time waster it is. All of these technological advances can be really good for us…but they also have their downfalls.
I challenge every one of you to take some time out of your day for silence. If you’re addicted to facebook, walk away for a day and see what happens. If you take a walk outside, take off the headphones and you might be amazed by what you hear. Leave the blackberry at home when you go out, and use it sparingly, if at all, on vacation. Do something really good for yourself. Give yourself time to think, and then keep it to yourself rather than post it on facebook.
Corbett
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