I saw a quote the other day that said, “Phones of the 2020s are the cigarettes of the 1980s.” And I can’t help but agree.
It’s really hard to spend uninterrupted time with people anymore. We spend so much time in a virtual world where we crave to be constantly entertained that more often than not we struggle to authentically connect with the people we care about.
Tell me I’m not alone in this: does anyone else feel inadequate when you’re spending time with someone, in person, and they’re on their phone— not because they want to show you something funny they saw, but just because they feel like scrolling or seeing what everyone else in the world is doing, while they’re spending time with you?
It’s as though I’m not good enough or entertaining enough to be worthy of undivided attention. It makes me feel like I’m boring and not nearly as fun to be around as their phone.
But when you find your people— your real high-quality people— they won’t just send you funny memes(though they definitely will send you funny memes) but even more important than that they’ll text you, ask about how you are, what’s going on in your life in a GENUINE way. They’ll call you on their way home from work just to make their evening commute a little less stressful because they hear your voice at the end of the line. These are the people that make plans with you, IN PEN and you can hear the smile in their voice as the say, “I can’t wait to see you!”.
These are the people who put their phone down to be with you— they’re the people where you have genuine conversation of substance, enjoy witty banter, develop new inside jokes and talk as you people watch . These are the real MVPs.
If any of my friends wants to know what’s on my Christmas list, it’s your time. I don’t care what we do, I just want to spend uninterrupted time with you, in our own little world for a while. The gift of true, authentic presence.. A gift certificate for a massage is on that list too, but your time is DEFINITELY number 1! 😂
andrea statler 