So, on Memorial Day weekend was when I really got the itch to write again. I was sitting in Chipotle eating a scrumptious lunch with my sister and brother-in-law. We had been enjoying a fun day together talking, shopping, drinking coffee, and laughing. At Chipotle I was shocked to observe something that I doubtless had witnessed a hundred times, but for some reason that day it really irked me.
Sitting at the same table was a couple, probably in their late teens or early twenties. Each had their I-phones or some other touch screen phone. They were clearly together, at lunch to be together---and yet there they sat so engrossed in their world of electronics and facebook and texting that conversation had all but ceased between them. All that they said were the grunts similar to that of a caveman when one of them needed salsa from their partner sitting across the table.
Meanwhile, we at our table sat engaged in conversation and enjoyed every moment of our day. Is this where our society is going where all communication is electronic? Think of books...how long will it be till all our texts are on CD's, DVD's, I-pads, Kindles, and so on? There is something epically romantic about picking up an old book, opening it up, and holding it on your lap. Even our written communication is different. We seldom write letters or send cards except on birthdays. We send text messages with insipid little messages like "Lol", "TTYL" and so on.
Conversely, I am just as guilty of this overuse of technology. I have facebooked Ryan to tell him that I love him when he is sitting in the same room as me. However, I still think a handwritten card carries a feeling with it that the electronic message will never have. Call me old fashioned...but somehow I feel like Dickens, Twain, and Austen would be on my side. :)
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