Lifeless Life?

Toward the end of this past summer, I received a handwritten letter from one of my best friends. My initial reaction was somewhere along the lines of, "Whoa. What the heck is this? What do I have to click to open it?" Alright. My reaction wasn't really quite this severe. But basically. And I must say that I am forever indebted to this friend of mine. I mean, sure I receive an uncannily large amount of college mail, but so does everyone. It's not the same. It's not alluring. It's not heartfelt. It's as close to being impersonal as personal can get. No, this letter was different. It took me back to the days of pen pals and stationery and vivacious anticipation. Indeed, that very day, I rediscovered how enamored I am with the simple, with the tangible, with the sheer reality of it all. And it got me thinking.

This generation is imprisoned by the computer screen, by the smartphone, by addictive texting. Look at me, I'm preaching about excessive computer use as I sit here, clicking away at my own computer keys. But it's serious. It's so serious. We're trying to better our lives so much that we are no longer truly living. Essentially, we're too busy with our faulty idea of life to live. And it's frightening to think about. 

What is face-to-face interaction? Is that even a real thing anymore? Honestly, I couldn't tell you if I tried. Now, don't get me wrong here. I think technology can do absolute wonders for the world we live in. It has already, and I am confident that it will continue to do so. It's this technology that has opened so many doors for us as humans, from treating diseases to becoming much more efficient in terms of production. And I'm not totally against social media sites either. That's not where I'm coming from. I believe that they are crucial for keeping touch with people you would ordinarily lose track of altogether.  Or for contacting family members who are too far to reach any other way. Like my sister who lives in Rwanda. Without facebook and skype, my family would have no idea what was going on in the life of my sister for two-and-a-half years. Yikes. Clearly, social media sites are not the problem.

However, the way we use them can be. They begin to take over our lives. We care more about uploading pictures to facebook or instagram than reveling in the moment itself. We're more worried about how many retweets or favorites our tweet will get than we are about how we're actually affecting people in real life, how we're meeting their needs, how we're making them feel treasured and valued. And it kind of upsets me. Don't worry; I'm upset with myself as well.

But I've decided to change my approach a bit. Actually, completely. I've taken this new perspective. My goal is to write at least one letter per month. Not a big deal at all. It will be to a different person each time, detailing my intentions to revamp and revitalize REAL life, one person at a time. I've started to kind of really love when people take a long time to text me back. Heck, they could just not be texting me back, but I like to think that they are so busy savoring life, so busy soaking in the insurmountable joy of the moment that lies before them, that they simply do not have the time to respond right away. Yes, I like that idea very much.

You see, a successful life does not rest in one's amount of facebook friends or twitter followers or frequent texting conversations. Life exists and thrives only when one is able to relinquish any and all dependence on such things. When that persons recognizes the awesome beauty of the world around them, the unbelievable pleasure that comes from the spontaneity of the moment, the sweet music of actual laughter in the air, the intrigue of a face-to-face conversation, filled with deep thought, human touch, and spoken - not hastily typed - words.

Embrace this. Embrace reality. Embrace letters. Embrace the outdoors. Embrace touch. Embrace laughter. Embrace nature. Embrace physical contact. Embrace singing. Embrace dancing. Embrace phone calls. Embrace coffee dates. Embrace spontaneous road trips. Embrace impromptu walks through the park. Embrace nights beneath the stars. Embrace life.