Connected And Lonely

Technology today has become an inseparable part of our lives. We are so much indulged in our devices that we are being together while not being together. We are constantly surfing the internet and texting non-stop. We remove ourselves from our present state of mind and we dive into our phones. It clearly is causing us trouble in how we see ourselves, but also how we relate to each other. We are starting to feel it's okay to be alone together. People gather to be with each other but also want to be somewhere else at the same time. Is it because we are not capable to face the present reality? Is it another escaping mechanism our mind indulges in? We are connected to each other more than ever, but we can still end up hiding from each other.

Today, the younger generation is lacking in confrontational skills. We fall victim to ghosting because we don't know how to properly develop face-to-face relationships. We are developing robots to socialize with us, to be our companions, is it because we have lost the trust in each other that we will not be there for one another. Those robots can mimic human speech and gestures but can they ever empathize? They don't know life, they won't face death. When we are vulnerable, we run to technology. And this technology has connected us like never before but at the same time showing signs of unprecedented loneliness among people. We are now afraid of real intimacy and we are designing technologies that will give us the illusion of companionship without the demands of a real relationship. We are turning to technology to help us feel connected in ways we can comfortably control, when we're not really comfortable and not so much in control.

Today's idea of being in solitude is frightening and most people see it as loneliness and isolation. We have lost our capacity for solitude, to gather ourselves. As a result, we are now not able to form real and deep attachments with people because we only turn to them in order to feel less anxious. Incapability for solitude makes us believe that always being connected is going to make us feel less alone. But the truth is if we're not able to be alone, we're going to be more lonely. Technology sure has brought us closer, but it can't teach us to be self-aware and to appreciate others for who they are. And for that, we need to realize the boundaries between our life offline and our life online.