Communication Without Restraints
Caroline Dennin
Friday, September 29th- I wake up, check my phone
for messages, scroll through my social media, and then, I finally converse with
my roommates. Why is my phone the first form of communication I use instead of
the people actually in my presence? My only assumption relies on the idea that
our world is communication obsessed- all day, all night, all over the world-
people are in constant communication. This ability is something I overlook in
my everyday life but this day I dedicated myself to analyzing every aspect of
the way I communicate with others and conversely, how others communicate with
me.
Back to my cell phone, compared to my friends I would say
I am not as reliant on it; however, this does not mean I am not always on it. As
I read through my messages of the day, there is so much to say about
communication via the means of texting. First, there is little to no grammar
consideration- I spell things wrong and I abbreviate. Secondly, there is no
sense of reality in the conversation- as I start to notice this, I yearn to
hear the other person’s voice- the conversation feels emotionless. And third,
there is miscommunication as I constantly fight with my sister via text about
what clothes she is and is not allowed to steal from my closet. Texting, a
major form of communication in my daily life, started to appear as less
valuable when I compared it to real-life interactions.
I do not have any classes on Fridays and this was
communicated very clearly by the leggings and sweatshirt I got dressed in that
morning. My attire said to my roommate how comfortable I was and how I planned
to spend my day in a more relaxed setting. As we spent the morning together,
our conversations, as almost always, consisted of joking, complaining, and
trivial topics. However, this Friday afternoon stood out from most because I
had an interview for a club I am hoping to join. My outfit for this encounter
communicated a completely different message. As I met with the board of
directors with my hair straightened attired in my nicest blazer, suit pants,
and blouse my appearance told them how prepared I was for the interview. In this
conversation, my posture also spoke miles. I sat as straight as a board and
made constant eye-contact to deliver a professional sense of myself. The
comparison between Friday morning and Friday afternoon made prevalent how unspoken
things go a long way in communicating for themselves.
Today, asking a teenager to go the hour without their
cell phone or any technology would be likened to asking them to part with a
limb for the day- It is sad, but honestly it is the truth. From this exercise I
have learned being unplugged from technology is a blessing, not a burden. To
see the real impact of this separation I tried to do a daily activity in which I
usually am attached to my phone but this time without it- I went on a run and honestly,
the difference was unbelievable. I had no music blasting in my ear, no way to
keep track of my distance, and no distractions. As I ran through the beautiful
neighborhood in Baltimore, a path I run a few times a week, I notice way more-
I can see the leaves changing colors, the smiling faces of kids playing by the
pond, and I can hear the sound of the wind. I am more observant and more
appreciative for the path seeing it for what it truly is without any
distractions. I even stop my run to take in my surroundings, something I would
not have ever done before. Another blessing which took me by surprise was not
knowing the time. I am the type of person that relies heavily on a schedule but
without the time I felt free of pressure to run faster.
Once I was reunited with my phone, I felt entrapped to
it- to catch up on everything that I missed over the last hour, when in reality-
I did not miss anything I couldn’t live without. Having my phone again only
emphasized the liberation I felt without it. From this observation, I have
concluded that communication in the form of technology places constraints. It
is not possible to convey your message with the same emotion, delivery, and reality
that you could via a real conversation. In my opinion, real conversation (in
person) wins it all. And this is not just talking with my roommate while we
both sit on our phones- the best way to communicate is face-to-face with no
distractions because it allows you to observe more and take in more of the
conversation.
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