Going without technology for 48hrs
The first feeling I experienced after giving away my phone was
freedom. I usually hold my phone in my hand, so the feeling of the wind on my
hand was very weird. I started moving my arms back and forth as if they were
attached my whole life and I was moving them for the first time. As I got in
the car and faced the 5o’clock usual traffic, I thought I will not survive
without music. I usually connect my phone to my car and listen to the music I
download but this time I had to listen to imposed music from the radio. I know
I was already cheating by listening to the radio but it was really impossible for
me to stay calm and make it home without tearing my hair. Cars’ honking at the
end of a long and tiring day is exhausting and my only way to stay calm and
save energy is through music. The first night was not very difficult; I made
some traditional telephone calls, had dinner with my mother and went to bed
early. Wednesday morning, I went to the French embassy to ask a couple of
questions about some papers. I waited in line for my turn and a few minutes
after, a man came and stood behind me, also waiting for his turn. Instead of
looking on my non-existent phone, I started looking at catalogues and brochures
displayed on a table besides me. Honestly, I acted as if I was reading them
just to avoid the man’s eyes. At this moment, I felt
really bad, not because I had difficulties avoiding the man’s eyes, but because
I realized how insecure and awkward I can be.
As for the rest of the time left, I enjoyed the company of some friends and had lovely conversations. I felt frustrated sometimes when I could not take pictures of beautiful things and post them on Snapchat or Instragram. Thursday night I even felt lost and bored so I went to bed early and slept better.
This experience was challenging and rich at the same time.
Nowadays, having a smart phone is a fulltime job and I realized I need to
control this job and not let it invade my whole life. During 48hours, I thought
about life in a different way and had a different perception on important
issues such as relationships between people. It made me realize that letters
and emoticons do not represent our feelings and emotions and we should not give
them importance and base our judgments on them. It also made me think of older
generations and how they lived waiting for precious live interactions. Today,
we do not value face to face interactions anymore. I truly encourage all of you to do turn off your virtual world and turn on the real life.
