“Hello!…Hello!...Could you just repeat what you said...Just hold on
okay…There’s too much noise here. I can’t hear anything you’re
saying.”
I’m sure most of us have had a
conversation like this, over the telephone, at some time or the other, haven't we?
Living in
Mumbai, the frequent offenders that assist this reduced audibility, would be
the loud decibels, emanating from street bands and revelry, during the
celebration of a festival, a fast out-station train passing by, a crowded noisy
street during a traffic jam, uncontrollable honking at a traffic signal (which is the strangest and silliest thing, since no one is going anywhere, till that signal changes colour)🤦♀️,
digging of bore-wells and machines at construction sites, the blaring
television in our living rooms, etc.
As if these
deafening sounds weren’t sufficient, to hamper our sense of hearing, we have
gadgets aplenty, to draw our attention away, from the people around us. Laptops,
Cell phones, Tablets - complete with the latest games and apps - and lo and
behold, we’re 'Visible and Invisible' at the same time.
Physically, we are 'Visible' to those around us. They see us; but if they try to get in a word, it
just won’t get through to us, because with our faces and minds buried in
Facebook, Twitter and Whats App, the virtual conversations take complete
control of us, and even if someone yells straight into our ears, we wouldn’t
really hear it.
Technology thus has the power, to lure us into a world of chats
and instant messaging, that takes us far beyond the world, that we are physically living in. It
gently coaxes us, to spend every waking moment in cyberspace, with people we
refer to as our ‘Friends'.
...But ironically, after it has systematically
ensnared us to such an extent, that we stop talking to the people in the same
room as us – mainly our family; we have chosen to name this activity
‘COMMUNICATION’. We even have the audacity to say that our means of
communication, have evolved and developed.
However, when I look at people around
me, with all their fancy gadgets through which they ‘supposedly communicate’, I am
tempted to ask, “ARE WE REALLY COMMUNICATING??? ”🤔
A little child
loves it, when he can pick up a cricket bat, and play a game with his dad, even
if the bat seldom makes contact with the ball.
A toddler, loves to hear his
mother read him a bed-time story, even if he has heard the story a million
times before.
Little children enjoy coming home from school, and narrating all
the events of the day to their parents, very enthusiastically.
They are
always game for a 'family outing' over the weekend, or are happy just playing a
game of scrabble, monopoly or simply snakes and ladders, because it means they
get a chance to spend a few precious moments with their mum and dad.💕
Sadly, these
treasured moments of togetherness in the family, are overtaken by gadgets and
gizmos these days. The nuclear family system, often deprives children of the presence
of grandparents, who would have otherwise made up, for the absence of the
child’s working parents.
Hectic work- schedules, jobs that entail working in
shifts, deadlines at the work-place, or just the presence of that very intrusive
cell phone, that keeps ringing incessantly, at all the wrong moments, are
collectively robbing our kids of what is rightfully theirs – FAMILY TIME.😔
As an Educator, who works with children everyday, I observe kids on a daily basis; and based on my observations, I think it is imperative for me, to remind all the parents I know, that they need
to make their children their top priority, and put genuine ‘Family time’, back on
their daily schedule.
While the world comes closer together, through the various
means of communication, we also need to RE-CHARGE
OUR CONNECTIVITY QUOTIENT in our families. I earnestly urge all parents to just ‘LISTEN TO YOUR CHILD’
more often than you pick up a cell phone or chat online.❤️
Likewise, I would
also like to remind all the young people I know, especially those who've been my students in the past; that there is no one who loves you, more
than your parents. As you grow up into teenagers, you often develop this
mistaken notion, that your parents have landed from another planet; and
therefore, can never seem to understand you.
You need to understand though,
that in reality, it is quite the contrary. Your parents may not always seem to
understand you, because of the so-called ‘generation-gap’; but in reality, you
just need to make an extra effort, and try and start opening up a little more,
by sharing your thoughts, fears, happiness, etc. with your parents.
Instead of whiling away the hours on networking
sites, ‘START TALKING TO YOUR PARENTS’, in the same way that you would talk to a friend; and before you know it, all
the lines of communication in your family will be open.😄✍️
