Last week my computer broke. To put it in real-person terms, the hard drive died. I didn’t have anything backed up, so now three years of pictures, songs, poetry, homework, love letters and videos are gone. I spent a lot of time crying and yelling and just generally freaking out. I felt like I was losing three years of my life.
But my best friend softly whispered in my ear, “Your memories are in your head, not in your computer.” And then I was mostly okay.
I don’t want to make this a whole existential moment, but really, I think it’s about time I shifted my attitude toward technology. We all laugh about computers ruling the world someday, but don’t they sort of rule our lives already? The first thing I do in the morning is check my phone. Then I get on my computer and check my email, facebook, tumblr, twitter, my friends’ tumblrs… you get the idea. I don’t walk out on my porch and look at the horizon, or take the time to pray or stretch or meditate. I’d rather skip breakfast than ignore the internet. How much of this precious life am I wasting by escaping into an internet connection instead of a real, face-to-face connection?
I think it’s time for a change. It’s going to be difficult since I am a student, and thus spend most of my time parked in front of a computer out of necessity. But I think I can do it. Google doesn’t need to be my best friend. I don’t need to have proof of every life event on Instagram. Maybe I could sing my new songs to the birds and the trees instead of a microphone plugged into a laptop.
Like I said, this will be hard. So if you have any tips on how to ease oneself back into the real world, I’m all ears.
