Look up from your phone

Yet I'm lonely.

I recently happened to see a video, and I thought I really wanted to share with you, like NOW. The video starts with I have 422 friends yet I'm lonely. Guess most of you would have seen it, or if not you sure will want to, at the end of this. It is a spoken word film that runs for 4:59 mins.

At the beginning, you get curious and laugh at the coincidences the video and you meet up. However,
there is a sharp truth at the end of the video. It goes explaining how life could be much more interesting, when you look above your smart phone.

Smart phones produce dumb kids

A smart phone = dumb kids and stupid people. This is our next generation. When I was a kid, back in India, my dad never let me and my baby sis watch TV close to the monitor. He used to 'lecture' us to maintain a constant 2-3 feet away from the TV. Gone are the days, where people thought of their babies' ( A ten-year old is still a baby, their eyes are not to be exposed to so much radiation/waves/heat whatever ..) vision, health and intellectual growth. Or atleast the way things are seen, are changed.

Kids these days do not slide down in a park, go out cycling , race with friends, climb up a tree, do skipping, play hide and seek, build tree-top houses, scribble drawings/paintings nor play in the swings. My heart sinks when I see a kid who does not want to make eye contact with strangers, who plays nothing but PC games, gets easily bored and says 'noone of my age to play with'. There are debates that kids are smarter this generation, and ask more questions.

However, what I say is, we do not have to explain every details of technology, NOW. This is their precious childhood. We have absolutely no rights to steal it away from them. As they grow up, they eventually will learn and shine themselves. What say? If we do not put our confidence in them, who else will? The next time, your kid has his/her birthday, think of gifting a pair of running sneakers, a plant pot, a baby bird or a football, rather than an Ipad!

Fun without smartphones 

We, as kids, always found amusing things around us. My cousin, sis and I used to play shuttle cork in our neighborhood, go racing with our bicycles, fall and get scratches, do gardening, harvest fruits from trees, play hide and seek until we were soo tired, while the boys played cricket and come home all tired as if they were a part of the National team ! (They still do!) My aunt used to tell us crazy stories out of her own imagination, and its so funny today, that we still go up to her asking for a story to be told ! (sounds so nice na? your kid will also enjoy these .. its just a matter of time for them to like!) I have vowed to myself, that when I get a kid, I will give him/her all that I enjoyed growing up and most importantly not create a separate facebook account from age 7! (Yeah yeah, people do that :/)

Here's the video

Lastly this video, talks on how unsocial we have become because of social networking. What all we miss, in a delusion of having an amazing time with 'unreal people'! At the end of the video, I felt guilty of being a part of this stupid machine too. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z7dLU6fk9QY

Have a look, take a breath and go out to the real, much beautiful World !! while I too rush now to go swimming, enjoying the Summer here ! (I'm leaving my phone back home, lets see how it feels like)

Happy Friday!