I never realized how quiet an
apartment could be. No music, no YouTube, and no movies: just complete and
utter silence. There is plenty of time to think when you aren’t constantly
focused on your facebook status or what’s up next on Pandora. The first weekend
of March I did a media fast, and it was awesome. No phone, no radio, no
computer, no nothing. The first and second days of the media fast were hard. I
never realized how much I rely on my phone to keep in touch with others.
Between texting and facebook, one has a seemingly unlimited opportunity to communicate
with others; take those away and you are socially alienated (heaven forbid you
actually walk over to a friend’s house and ask them in person what their plans
are). I often found myself reaching for
my phone when I wasn’t doing anything. It shocked me really; I was so dependent
on my phone for entertainment.
This is an increasingly disturbing
trend; I mean the phantom buzzes and the constant reaching to feel if I had my
phone in my pocket, what else could be more disturbing right? But in all
seriousness, I realized that I probably spend an unhealthy amount of time with
my media devices if I am constantly reaching for them. I also decided that I need
a watch: asking your roommates or consulting the sun to know what time it is
gets dull after awhile.
Another realization I had during the
media fast was how heavily my classes require me to use my computer. I depend
so much on my computer I imagine it would be near impossible to go for extended
periods of time without using it. All the class information is on learning
suite; I use Microsoft Word to write papers and blog posts; all updates and
changes made in classes also on learning suite or in my email. Our society
depends highly on the internet and computers to organize and carry out daily
tasks. On one side it is very enabling; on the other side it is very crippling.
Something else I observed during the fast was
how much I missed being able to open up my laptop and type my thoughts and
explore my ideas through print like I usually do. I write a lot. I usually have
at least one paper (or draft of a paper) due per week and I post two or three
times on my blog. It’s sad, but not having my computer was almost like not
being able to access a part of myself. I could have just as easily taken pen
and paper to do the same thing, but it seems that my fingers have found the
keyboard more satisfying than quill and ink.
Of course there are benefits and drawbacks to this. There is to
everything we do. Being dependent on technology makes life easier until our
capabilities to access the internet are taken and we are rendered useless
because we don’t know how to do anything without it. Not being able to Google how to [insert what you want here] can really throw a wrench in what you can do
in life. That’s how I felt during the first two days when I was alone.
I learned over the three days was if
you surround yourself with other people, really there isn’t an immediate need
for technology. In fact, relationships are enhanced when we turn of our phones,
take a step back from instagram and twitter, and focus on who we are with at
the moment. In some ways social media isn’t very social. What’s the point of
having 1,500 friends on facebook if your ability to speak to them in person
suffers? All things are good when used in moderation. Being able to control
ones proper usage of technology, consumption of goods, or intake of information
is a key part of our eternal progression. Obsession is never good; balanced and
educated lifestyles are. Plus there are so many talented and awesome people out
there to meet and learn from that we really don’t have too much time to waste
looking at mims and pointless YouTube videos.
By the third day I found the break
refreshing. Without the distractions of my phone, computer and iPod, I was able
to truly enjoy the company of my friends out in the beautiful sun. It was Sunday.
I think that it was the first time since before my mission that I used my English
scriptures at church. How sad is that? It is really convenient to have my
scriptures on my phone, but there is something about holding your real
scriptures in your hands. It was refreshing. After church it was great. It was
a nice day outside and everyone was outside our apartments on the grass and I
spent a lot of time just talking with people. I really like talking to people;
the extravert in me recharges when I do. It amazes me how much we can learn
from each other: to do this we need to take the time away from cyberspace and
remember to live in reality. I felt so relaxed the entire day and in all
honesty, I think we could all use a media fast every once in a while to help us
recalibrate and refocus on what matters most. It can help to spend some time
off grid.
The most ironic thing about this
entire experience was how others reacted when I told them I was doing a media
fast. Some of the common responses were: what’s wrong with your professor? Does
he want you to fail all of your classes? I found this humorous: they were
getting more upset than I was and I was the one doing the fast. This goes to
show that our generation has grown accustom to last minute planning and
procrastination; if you plan well three days really shouldn’t affect your
grades at all. I’d tell them not to worry because I’ve done most or all of the
necessary homework for the weekend. What irony. I quickly realized we are all
too dependent on technology and we need to learn a little more about
responsibility. I too at times fall into the trap of waiting until the day of
to do my homework; it’s a bad habit and can be very a dangerous one to develop
for our future. Deadlines are a part of life. Everything has a deadline and if
we don’t do our best to reach those we will be held responsible for the product
delivered when the clock hits zero.
At the end of the day I realized a
lot of things: 1. The world can be silent if we let it, providing us with time
to think about important life issues: silence is therapeutic 2. All aspects of
life have become predominantly web based 3. If we are not careful technology
can cripple our abilities to perform and live if we become too dependent on it
4. Relationships with other people are and can be the most fulfilling aspect of
living if we put in the time to properly cultivate them 5. Taking a small hiatus
from technology can act as a cleansing agent, resetting ourselves to our original
presets and restoring us to factory settings 6. Because of the dependence we
have for technology, we have grown irresponsible and apt to procrastinate,
which leads us to produce a poorer quality of work. In reality, there wasn’t anything
negative that happened to me during the media fast. Sure it was hard, but it
was necessary for me to learn how important it is to live my life in the
present: surrounding myself with people and things which truly matter in life. We
should all take some time to reset and learn how to relive life. I would challenge
all to read this to do a media fast for three days and see what happens. I bet
you learn a lot about yourself during those three days.
Love,
Will
Glade
The
one walking beside you.
No comments:
Post a Comment