The year is 2015. The sky seems grayer than usual. Probably caused by the LPA. I get up with a start. Wait! Saturday, it's Saturday! Good. The lines between the days of the week have blurred. Night is day. Day is night. Oddly, the only thing that makes anything feel real is all in the 4 x 2 gadget made of steel and glass.
Ok, enough with the drama. It's just another lazy Saturday morning and according to my phone, and my snoring bed buddies, it's time to get up and prepare breakfast.
Morning ritual done, I head down stairs with a pillow, my phone, pocket wifi, and chargers.
After boiling some water, I do a bit of housework. Even with only the three of us, the house can get a bit disorderly. The water boils just in time and I squeeze in half a lemon into a cup of hot water. Once I've cooked up a storm, I settle down on the couch and check my social networks.
And then, it's four hours later.
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I'm embarrassed to say that this is how my Saturdays usually go. I still go about my duties as a wife and mother, but more often than not, I bond with my family with a screen (big or small) in front of us.
Most of the time, I don't have to step out of the house.
My phone and the apps that I have has made almost everything a click/touch away.
Whether it's to check my bank or purchase things that I want or need. Pizza, pasta, burgers or a salad? There's an app for that.
I don't buy newspapers anymore since the online versions are even more updated. To find out what's happening, I just check my Twitter feed. The world also seems smaller because I get to keep in touch with my loved ones who are miles or continents away, even if it is just via Facebook, Viber or FaceTime. Finding out what people I admire are up to is as easy as clicking ❤️ on their Instagram accounts.
Does a digital lifestyle necessarily mean a sedentary one? Not necessarily.
Although I don't get to go to the gym anymore, it isn't because I don't want to but because the gym I used to go to moved to a farther location - so I work out in the comfort of my own home with my workout playlist blaring.
Of course there are things that easily beat a social network or TV series catch up.
Fun time with my lovelies. Road trips. Concocting something in the kitchen. Window shopping. Coffee dates. Hand writing letters. Long luxurious baths. Using an old fashioned typewriter. Books.
Human touch.
I haven't fully embraced the digital lifestyle because I don't think I need to. Gadgets are there for a reason - to help make life easier for people. To innovate. To explore. For work. For play. But I live in the real world - with real people, real problems, real priorities. There may be a lot of hurt in the real world, but there's a lot of joy too.
I just have to keep reminding myself of that.
