I stared into the `Are you sure?` notification on my screen before I hit the ‘Delete’ button. And there! I got rid of the most consuming thing of my life — Whatsapp and the popular and addictive Facebook.
Ever since phone apps like Whatsapp, Viber, and Facebook have invaded our life, I have observed that we have turned slaves to them. It is an addiction that has encircled humans in its vicious web. And the more you invest in it, the more you lose your sanity.
I feel sorry for the kids of today’s generation who are so bogged down and fascinated by their smart phones and the latest apps, that they miss out on the fun of growing up. Rather than exploring their talent in the playground or even in the company of friends in picnics or outings, every kid I come across nowadays is more of a gadget-freak and everyone wants to be the `selfie` king and queen.
I too have been a part of the ever-increasing number of people who fall prey to it day after day. People interact less, text more.
Karan Johar once rightly said, `Technology has ruined romance`. Not just romance, but it has made the very essence of any relationship quite baseless. Even when people hang out in groups, everyone is buried deep into their smart-phones. Likes, check-ins, instant photo updates on social media platform like Facebook, Instagram, and so on, have somewhere ruined the fun of enjoying time that is supposed to be spent together.
People are more bothered about getting clicked and post ‘selfies` than being in the moment in itself.
And yes, I too found myself getting more and more trapped in the world of Facebook and Whatsapp and that is when I decided to leave the addictive smart-phone app world behind and live in the real world, the present.
I had a number of reasons to quit Whatsapp and Facebook and other time-consuming messengers.
For example, you might not want to reply to some people whom you might not know so well in real life. But because of the fact that the number is fed in your contact list and to not appear rude, when someone texts you an enthusiastic `hi`, you have no option but to reply and thus start a conversation.
Life without the instant messengers and Facebook is a breather and for once I feel I’m not married to or in a relationship with technology. It proves as a mental blockage at times.
You are added into a number of unwanted groups and sometimes in a group with a number of people whom you do not even know. And then there are the unbearable notifications from the group messages which consume space on the phone. One simple forwarded message gets over 20 – 30 replies and the constant beeping literally can drive you nuts.
Our sense of creativity goes for a toss. For we are so tied down by these tools, that most of the time we get addicted even without realising it.
Most of the people complaining of fewer sleeping hours or improper sleeping habits can probably agree that most of the time it’s our smart phone that keeps us engaged till the late hours of the night.
Despite people surrounding us, we are lost in the world of our own. Though these messengers have certain advantages, the side effects are way higher.
After the invention of Instant Messengers like Whatsapp, Hike, Viber and so on, the old concept of greeting through a phone call has simply vanished.
Rather than getting wishes through a call or even a personal message on festive occasions like New Year or Diwali, we are now attuned to receiving a forwarded message on our Whatsapp messenger.
By deleting these apps from my phone, I can say I am at peace now. No more meaningless and forceful conversations and I can sleep peacefully without having to wake up by the beeps of some unwanted notifications on my phone screen.
I’m better off without these apps that consume my entire attention and time that I cannot afford to spare in my already crammed up schedule. They are probably needed in the world where everyone needs to communicate all the time. But in my mind they are not as necessary as they are made out to be and life is much simpler and happier meeting friends and greeting with real smiles instead of virtual shallow relationships.
