Are We Talking to People or Cell Phones?

My late husband, Dean, always had a cell phone from the time they first came out.  The first ones were only available for the car and were "tied" into the car cigarette lighter.  They could not be taken around and looked at.  It stilled seemed miraculous that you could talk to someone in a car at the time.

Now everyone has a cell phone that is carried around everywhere.  Most people have cut the ties to their "home phone" that plugged into a wall. 

The upside is that help is always at hand literally with a cell phone.  You can use its GPS features and automatically call people or find information by speaking instructions to "Siri".  You can play games when you are waiting for car repairs or doctor's appointments.  You can check Facebook and use a variety of apps.

The downside is that I believe we have a national cell phone addiction.  No one speaks as much to people anymore.  People at restaurants are checking their cell phones instead of communicating to the person they are eating with.  People are looking at phones while walking or in their cars.  We talk to others through the cell phone and not face to face.

I personally realized how lost I felt and out of touch with the world when I lost my cell phone.    That is when I realized how dependent I had come to my cell phone.

What can we do?  I think it is important to put our cell phones away as much as possible and really concentrate on the people in our lives.  Pay attention to what people are saying.  Put away your cell phones in classrooms, churches, or any meeting.  When you are eating with people really talk to people and do not check messages on your cell.  I have heard of people who live together who text each other rather than talking.  Real communication is being lost through short texts.  People are having a more difficult time focusing or concentrating because they are in the habit of checking into messages on cells.

It takes time to break our cell phone habits but being able to be fully present with others in our lives is worth it.