pros and cons of the advanced world

cell phone: necessity or luxury?Technology. It makes life so simple and easy. Yet it is also overwhelming at times in that maybe it makes things too easy. In my standard lifestyle in the US, I almost always left the house with my cell phone. People could always contact me whenever they wanted, either through texting or calling. Regardless if I’d answer or not, their message would be made. And most importantly, I could always contact someone if I wanted. I could even text google to find out directions and phone numbers. I could take pictures with it. My cell phone became my gadget, my right hand man. Instead of a luxury, it became a necessity.

It took my dad forever to get a cell phone. He never wanted to be able to be reached by people at all times. He thought that if he was in his car, or away from a phone, that that was his time to not be interrupted and simply live his life. But the rest of us always thought it was annoying because when we needed him, we could barely get a hold of him. I have now gotten in touch with his philosophy. In Argentina, I have the dinkiest crappiest cell phone ever. I never use it. It almost never leaves my room. I maybe charge it once a week. I use it more as an alarm clock than a phone. I have grown accustomed to being free, and I love it. I love not being reliant on my cell phone. I love that no one can get a hold of me whenever they want. The ball is always in my court. I don’t wear a watch, so I never know what time it is. Time limits don’t exist anymore. I never know the date. I don’t want to see my progressive count-down to going home. I have let go of the world of technology for a while and I love it. Free as a bird…or so I thought.

This weekend I was thrown back into my American reality. I started to think of my phone again as a necessity, and I hated not having it. I found out that my best friend was hospitalized for 36 hours, and I had no way to contact him. During his last college soccer game of the season, his own goalie kneed him in the face, breaking his jaw in two spots. He had to stay two nights in the hospital and receive a four hour surgery to screw his jaw in place and wire his mouth shut. He can’t talk. He can’t eat. He can’t open his mouth for 6 weeks. Sounds like the worst bone in the world to break. I had no way to be contacted about it all. He couldn’t call me when he was out. He couldn’t text me to tell me he was okay. I felt so helpless and alone. All I wanted to do was contact him and tell him how sorry I was. But I couldn’t. I wanted to be reassured about how he was doing. But he couldn’t. I wanted him to know I was thinking about him. But he doesn’t. It was the worst feeling in the world. I just wanted my tiny ol’ cell phone to send a text message, and to see one pop back up in my screen. I hated that I couldn’t be contacted. I hated that I couldn’t contact.

So now I find myself in a debacle. Is it really that great to be free as a bird? After all, technology was advanced for a reason. Maybe it is nice to be contacted and to contact at the ease of just pushing a few buttons. Cell phones do come in handy, especially in emergencies. So maybe it won’t be the end of the world to go back to a cell phone when I go home. I will just have to find a balance where I’m not obsessively attached to a gadget, yet I am accessible when needed. My friends and I came to a conclusion that right now there is the perfect amount of technology in the world. That life has been made easy enough, and we don’t necessarily need anything else. We live in a good time of moderation. We can’t take it all for granted, but we can’t let it take over us either.