There are many things that, from my point of view, require my full attention, but I’ve noticed that I don’t always give it to them—or that other things prevent me from doing so. And I have to say that I hate that—realizing that I’m just there out of habit and that I’m not enjoying it or turning it into a pleasant memory for later. One of the things I feel is most important to me is when it comes to my family and friends.
I’ve noticed, like everyone else, that social gatherings with our friends or family are now very technology-heavy—in the sense that everyone has an electronic device in their hand to distract themselves for a moment right in the middle of a conversation. Sometimes, I look around and absolutely everyone present has a phone in their hand—and, unfortunately, so do I. These days, when I notice it, I put mine away immediately, but it’s still a problem.
As the years go by, you realize that time passes faster and faster, and moments like these are the only ones we have left when there are people so dear to us who are no longer with us. Thinking about this, I make a big effort—because the truth is, we’re already so used to having our devices nearby that it’s hard to put them down. I’ll have time to check my phone later, but right now this moment belongs to my family or friends, and that’s what I’ll hold onto.
It’s true that we have to stay up to date and understand how things work these days, but the truth is that the more technology we have, the fewer lasting relationships we manage to maintain. I love how my mom and dad now put their phones down when I go to visit them, and that makes me want to put mine down too so I can be with them. Something really crazy and negative—though I’m also seeing the positive side of it—is that in my country they’re implementing power outages of up to six hours a day.
And while this is terrible because it prevents us from doing what we need to do every day—or at least makes things inconvenient—the truth is that when I visit my parents and there’s no electricity, I’ve noticed that we spend much more time talking, catching up, and there are no interruptions to our conversations—which allows us to understand what the other person is thinking, feeling, or even worrying about. And although I wouldn’t want them to keep cutting off the power, the truth is that I’m even learning from these power outages.
I must fully admit that what steals my attention without my consent is my phone—in this case and in many others. Glancing at the time is just an excuse to log into social media to reply to a message or something similar, or even to make a bank transaction. All these things can distract you and trap you in a vicious cycle where you can’t stop swiping your finger on your phone to do whatever it takes—you even forget what’s being said or respond without really listening to what people are telling you.
And the truth is, when you step back and look at this whole situation from the outside, you realize it doesn’t make sense. You’re wasting precious time you’re spending with people you love by doing something you can do later, when you’re no longer with them. Nothing is so important that it can’t wait—and that justifies ignoring absolutely everything important right in front of you.
So if there’s one thing I’ve learned these days, it’s that when technology isn’t involved, you’re able to connect much more deeply with your loved ones and friends, pay closer attention to what they’re saying, and, as a result, understand the other person better. So there’s only one outcome, and it’s positive: the bonds of friendship and family are strengthened when we put down our phones for a moment and are simply fully present.
-Content entirely of my authorship and inspiration. -Original text in Spanish, translated at DeepL. -Personal photographs, taken with my Huawei p30 Lite Phone. -Banners designed in Canva Pro.
