My two year old niece asked if she can text me and the 7 year old actually does text. They fight over playing Fruit Ninja on the iPad and stay glued to the screen instead of outside fighting over the ball/jump rope and at least interacting with one another.
I had a great talk with one of my teenage mentees last night about discretion and privacy. They don't have real relationships, they have cyber-lationships and don't know how to speak an honest word face to face to each other. They plaster their emotions and circumstances on their Facebook page and not only get lost in translation but invite the whole world to chime in on their relationship dramas. They paint false personas of themselves on their profile and get their feelings hurt when someone turned out to be different than what they thought (or read online).
A few weeks ago on Twitter someone posted "Television has proved that people will look at anything rather than each other". All the garbage on TV, the fame hungry image of Schnooky, the drama feeding Real Housewives series and the violence and pure ignorance of the Bad Girls Club and straight up foolishness that we allow ourselves to sit through. We would rather poison our thinking with that, then turn off the TV and have a real heart to heart with our spouse, our close friend, or even more troubling our children.
Let's not forget about the everyday poor communication of texting/emailing versus a phone call. Teens aren't the only ones getting lost in translation. Husbands & Wives, Grandparents & Grandchildren, Sisters & Brothers, Business Partner & Biz Partner, Father & Child. We're all allowing the technologies to make us a disconnected, insincere, non-loving world. True, God gave us the ingenuity to create these things and evolve into a smarter more efficient people. But I would imagine He still ranks spending time lifting each other up and loving on one another higher than the genius creations we've made. It's important not to get lost in it all. Seek the intimacy and true joy that comes from real interactions, no blurred confusing virtual lines or distraction of other nonsense. Reach out and literally touch someone.
Peace yall!
- BJ Gianni
www.youtube.com/bjgianni
http://crazybayooteefull.blogspot.com
@bjgianni
I'll be the first to partially agree and disagree. There are lots of relationships I would just no longer have without my technology. True I've been accused of "loving" my iPad. Those that know me know that to be a truth. I also try to see those same people that I love over many miles with that same technology. Most times those conversations turn into many hours and feel very much like we were in the same room. It is in my mind a win win. But then I love my technology. LOL.
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