On Being Too Connected

http://www.nablopomo.com/

I used to work at a call center for one of the top cellphone carriers as a customer service representative. Over time, I was privileged to become close friends with several people with whom I ate lunch most days. We would often go to a local park, weather permitting, and sit in a picnic shelter rather than stay at the call center or go to a restaurant. Our lunch break was later in the afternoon, and we greatly enjoyed the respite from people. This picture is the view we had from the shelter.

There were usually four of us, and even as we ate our burgers and fries and chatted about the things co-workers are wont to chat about, at least 2, sometimes 3, occasionally all four of us would have our smart phones in hand. Texts. Emails. Web browsing. Facebook. Weather updates. Calls to and from friends and family.

We were not looking at this.

It faded to the background.

Now the four of us no longer work together. Two us have left the company, the two remaining are not able to have their meal breaks at the same time any more.

We should have been paying more attention to this

Or taken a late afternoon drive just three miles away where we may have seen this, because we live in a beautiful place.

This is actually one of my favorite pictures, taken one afternoon as I was driving home. 

I feel certain we would be able to say now, "Remember how beautiful the sky was that afternoon?" or "I only need close my eyes and I can hear Big Cedar Creek behind us as we ate lunch."

I can't tell you who I was texting last week, or what about. I do not have a clue why I save most of the emails that I have *starred* in my Gmail account. But I can tell you how inspired and blessed I am by the place I call home, and the people I count as friends.

Think about this the next time your phone is ringing or beeping or buzzing and you are with a friend or loved one. The world will not stop if you forget to tag your location on Facebook when you eat lunch. Trust me.