Recently, I accidentally spilt a glass of water over my beloved iPhone 5s. Almost immediately, the screen went blank and it hasn’t worked since. It felt like I had lost a limb! I began to panic, knowing that, for a few weeks (until I can get a replacement) I will have to live without easy, quick access to Facebook, email, Skype, YouTube, etc.
And then it hit me: technology is taking over my life! Not a day goes by without me using the internet for at least two hours a day, be it for school, fun, online shopping, studying, or contacting my friends and family. In Forster’s story, people become obsessed with their “Book of the Machine.” When I first read the story two months ago, I found it a little scary because it does reflect our lives today, to some extent. We are all attached to a “machine,” be it a mobile phone, a computer or laptop, iPad, iPod or an MP3 player. When I realised that Forster had written his story in 1909, I was frightened – how did he manage to predict the future so accurately? Although we are not yet as obsessed as the characters in the story, it is believable that one day we may be! We have the fear of missing out. How can we resist the continual dopamine hits of someone “liking” our status, replying to our messages, or retweeting us?
Something else that has surprised me recently is using a pen and paper for writing – I’ve become so used to typing and texting that writing has become a little strange!
However, the past two weeks weren’t impossible. During my phone-free week I discovered two things. Taking a Internet-free day wasn’t horrible. There’s an uneasy edge to this challenge: shouldn’t we simply learn self-control? Every device has an off button, after all. Yet, we can be peculiarly unwilling to use it. I found that when I didn’t constantly have my phone in my hands all the time, I was connecting more with the people around me. I also learned that maybe kissing your phone a goodnight once it’s time to go to bed is a good idea. Lying on the pillow, it’s tempting to pick your phone up one last time. However, if you do pick up your phone, prepare for your sleep to be disrupted. The screens on electronic devices emit blue light which your brain associates with daylight, thus messing up your body clock. Do yourself a favour and simply don’t use your phone once you’re in bed.
I’m sure that once my replacement phone comes in, I will fall back into my bad habits – but for now, it is a refreshing change!!
