“Hot and dangerous if you’re one of us than roll with us…” Kesha blared from the stereo of my Rav 4. “So let’s go oh oh LETS GO!” two voices belted out at the top of their lungs. “We’re dancing like we’re dumb dum dum du du du dumb.” I sang as my hands danced along with beat of the music. This car dance party began with my friend in the passenger seat beside me, but it seemed somewhere mid-song Kesha and I had lost her attention to the extension of her hand.
I’m not saying doing two things at once is wrong, but in this instance I did feel a twinge of disappointment when I became aware it was I who was the lonely off tune voice in the car. It made me recall all the times before when I had sat in my friend’s exact position and done the same thing; only giving those who I was with half of my attention as the other half was given to my cell phone. At the time I saw no harm in giving half or even more attention to texting while in the presence of someone else, but after being in the others shoes I realized, it’s being selfish.
Often times we are so worried about the future we forget to live in the here and now. Even as I write this my attention is split by my phone sitting to my left buzzing with each new text and changing songs on my ihome on the right, when my time would be most efficiently spend if I could keep focused on the Laptop in front of me. It’s not only efficiency that technologies effect, but our relationships with people are too often ignored. I can so easily get caught up in a conversation through texting while in the presence of someone else. At the time the technological discussion seems important, but when looking back I wish I had put the phone aside and savored the quality time. I have realized the moments you spend with family and friends can never be retrieved, but the texts can always wait for a later time.
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