Listen Up!

So I have this theory: Everywhere you look people are drowning themselves in technology. What do I mean? Stand for five minutes in a skyway, on a street, or in a mall. Watch people walking past. Sure there are the groups of people talking and walking together, however there are of course people walking alone. But are they truly alone?

When is the last time that you rode in your car WITHOUT the radio, talking on the phone, or listening to your favorite CD? Why can't we walk on the street, in the skyway, or ride a bus without our favorite piece of technology attached to our hands or ears.

When I'm at home I find myself on my computer in front of the TV while talking on the phone. Am I trying to distract myself from something? This is where my theory comes to fruition: I believe we are trying to drown our emotions in technology. If we were to actually spend the day ALONE with only our thoughts, what would we tell ourselves? I think the results are too depressing for the experiment.

I was in counseling for a time after my divorce. My therapist challenged me to spend some time with myself. For someone suffering from lack of self worth and doubt, this was a scary assignment. Why couldn't she has asked me to confess all of my sins or confront my ex-husband with all of my wrong-doings? That would have been A LOT easier than actually listening to myself!

If we take time to listen to ourselves what will we hear? "You're worthless. Why can't you get a better job? You have failed in almost everything that you have done. You're alone. No one truly loves you. You're too fat, too ugly, too skinny, too plain." Naturally our existential self wants to deprive ourselves from happiness and optimism. Who wants to hear these voices? And so we pollute the voices with the outside world. If I'm talking to someone on my phone then I don't have to listen to myself.

There is a problem. Eventually we will have to deal with our issues. They may come out in a failed relationship or in a conflict with a family member. Or even worse, we try to lose ourselves in chemicals that will help us forget our reality. (sound familiar?) The skeletons in the closet will come out. But I don't want to think about that, I'm going to go send some text messages to 100 of my closest friends.