Personal Space and Trust
It has come to my attention that as I go for my daily walk, or run an errand while on foot, I notice that it is rare to encounter someone looking me in the eye, save the older generation. If people aren’t texting, messaging, calling, emailing, or downloading, they seem to be fiddling with their ipod or blackberry as they rush away through the beautiful sunshine. Enjoying God’s green earth around me I do not understand why you would distract yourself in this manner at one o’clock in the afternoon on a spring day. So I decided to investigate.
Now, I asked a fellow colleague, who was complaining about how her boyfriend hadn’t texted her within the hour,why exactly this was a problem. She told me that she needs to know what he is doing and he likes to know what she is doing throughout the day. Soon after she told me this he texted her. A hugh sigh of relief came over her, “thank God, (he texted), I couldn’t get a hold of you all day!”
Maybe it’s just me, but I long for the days when I used to see people trust their significant other, or be able to function without having to talk to them( or someone) every hour that they are apart or need to make a decision. A lot of people seem to act like it is the end of the world if they cannot consult somebody about colour they should pick out on a quick call from the cell phone in the clothing store or if their wife would prefer broccoli or beans for dinner. Pick one!
I myself almost became victim to this when shopping for some of our wedding decorations. I was in the store trying to decide what kind of candles I should buy and thinking to myself,” If only I had a cell phone, I could call Ken and get him to help me make the decision”. At the moment a sick feeling came into my stomach : Had I become someone who couldn’t make a small decision without the advice of someone else? It was like I had decided to stop thinking and making decisions for myself and act as though I had never even listened to what my husband wanted. Thank God I came to my senses and made the decision and never looked back.
It made me think about how much we as a society invade the personal space of our friends and family on a constant basis. We use every piece of electronic devices to check up on people, have other people make our decisions, not even realizing what it going on all around us. I believe that very few people are able to work on themselves and discover who they are becauset they take no time for personal growth, time away from others, time to be there own person.
So I challenge anyone reading this: tomorrow morning, leave your cell phone at home. Leave your blackberry at the office. Try not answering every email as though you are so desperate for attention. Do not rush to the phone as soon as you walk in the door to check the messages. Go for walk. Take some time for you. I know it’s a big decision, but ….maybe you do have it in you to make that decision on your own. (p.s. don’t text your best friend to decide if this is a good idea or not)!
G
