In class we have been learning of different ways to meet people without seeing them in person, ways to make everyone you know, and some you don't, aware what you’re doing without them experiencing it with you, ways to impress a potential employer without a meeting or interview.
Social media is opening up miraculous and new opportunities for us. It makes our lives easier and bridging gaps in space, age and time. However, social media is taking us away from humanity.
My twin sister and I used to do everything together. We used to talk for hours on end, watch movies and TV, and just spend quality, interactive time together. Over the past year, however, she's been getting more involved on Twitter and Facebook. Our long conversations were often interrupted by a great tweet or a subtle beep, which indicated a new wall post she'd received. The only tradition we kept up were movie nights once a week. The other night we were watching a movie together as she was glued to both her laptop and her Blackberry, and when I laughed, she lifted her head and said, "What?" I looked at her and asked, "Have you even been watching the movie?" and as she looked back down at her screens, she said "Uh-huh." Social media had done it. It had taken away the last bit of quality time we spent together.
It's such a shame that in order to be successful, we have to be gifted in communication through social media - when all I want is for it to go away. I miss the days when quality time meant enjoying another person’s presence and not "skyping" them or "tweeting" at them. However, this is the way of the new world and I have a feeling that we all have to get involved or we will be left behind.
-Shari Baron
