What if phones and Internet die Tomorrow
“Has anybody seen my phone”….trust me if there was an app to just keep a tab on the number of times I utter this sentence in a day and deduct a rupee from my account every time I say this,I wouldn’t even last beyond the 10th of every month.
Did u notice I never even thought of keeping a count “manually", my life is just so “App”iefied,tomorrow I would need an app to decide which lipstick to wear? But where is my phone?Ah!it is lying under the book I had brought to read during bedtime but chose the phone instead, and before sleeping buried it under the book to atone my guilt.It’s dead,I put it on charger. Still no life.,I try two other phones ,the same.I see the laptop and angrily press some buttons and this is what stares me back.
I do occasionally meet this B&W guy when I go to my hometown but today I am in no mood for him.What do I do??Yes,the landline, but hey ! where are the numbers??? How do I contact my Mom, how can I not remember even her number, wait,do I remember even my own?
As I distractedly make my cup of tea and sit on my rocking chair by the window, suddenly a thought crosses me “are they gone”??Maybe its difficult to imagine a 12 year old of 21st century,without a smartphone but I have lived in that era. Those born in the 80s would know, such a time did exist and honestly, it wasn’t that bad. Now, without realizing I am actually just having a cup of tea after ages, with no Facebook posts of friends to like, Instagram posts of celebrities to awe at or News updates to ponder over, I get lost in a labyrinth of thoughts of What Nows-
🚩RIP millions of selfies, I know it's heartbreaking, you had discovered a great angle just yesterday, but sorry.
🚩No more luxury to avoid unwanted people by pretending to be looking at your phone doing something earth-shatteringly important.
🚩You may bake the cake and eat it too..No it won’t be a crime if you don’t post a picture in the family group.
🚩Imagine a world where you would have dinner at a restaurant and everyone would actually look at each other.
🚩You would enjoy watching your kid take the first step, babble those first words, dance on stage, score that brilliant goal or accomplish that amazing somersault without a screen in between.
🚩Remember how we used to talk to strangers during a journey,weather always being a great ice breaker..Maybe with no phone to fiddle with you would care to talk to your co-passenger.
🚩Kids may have a hearty laugh over a game of snakes and ladders and feel like they have some real moolah while playing monopoly rather than just boasting about their Pubg or Minecraft scores and strategies.
🚩We have the shortest messages encrypted to convey our feelings for anything ranging from birth to death. Maybe next time you will receive real flowers, cakes,hugs and gifts on your birthday.
🚩Have you ever visited someone and found the door locked and rerouted to the next nearest person available?? We have, as appointments and schedules weren't the way of life at that time. Now be prepared to suddenly hear the doorbell ring and not know who is outside the door!!
🚩How often do we get the videos of people meeting with accidents,ever thought, while we get the video, does the person get the help?? Maybe now people would just be helpful and not think about photo opportunities.
🚩We would now keep a map in the car and know how to use it. Hope you know North from South!!
🚩You know what your sister who studies in London had for breakfast,and don’t feel the pinch when she hangs up . With no minute by minute updates available, there would be a sense of fear and longing for our loved ones.
🚩College kids would again have to take notes and not pictures and who knows the good old dictionary might regain its glory on the study table.
🚩Good buy Amazon Prime,Netflix..time to tune in to the radio and TV who are our only sources of entertainment left and remember the shows run at particular times.
🚩You want that jacket, don’t expect it to be delivered at your doorstep where you can make it yours by the swipe of a card. You have to make the effort to go to the shop, pay some bills and respectfully bring it home.
No, we won’t become wildlings without phones and internet, we just have to make some reshuffling and we would be good to go.
“Wait…what happens to that neon lemon green Lehenga I had kept in the Myntra cart after searching for an entire day and the matching earrings and the clutch,God!!it was such a steal deal…..Now this is a nightmare,this cant happens with me …” and as I feel a surge of agony, I wake up with a start as if I slipped off a sidewalk and my hand involuntarily reaches out for the phone. This time I know exactly where it is and as I rescue the metallic piece writhing under the weight of the book and hesitantly press the button. I see 16 notifications….but I stop just short of clicking on it.
I wake up, make myself my cup of tea and just have my cup of tea.
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