It’s Tuesday of this past week. I’m in an airport, with an hour to go before boarding. As I look around I see that 90% of those in the gate area I’m seated at are on their phones, with one exception – 2 young mothers with their young ones are engaged in conversation. One mom has what appears to be a 1-year-old, the other is managing a pair – an infant in a papoose wrap around her chest and a two-year-old in a stroller. The moms are chatting each other up. I don’t get the feeling they know each other as their chairs are facing the opposite direction, but their common role has opened the door for communication. They are laughing, alive, enjoying each other’s company. Unlike the 90%.
The guy directly in front of me has two masks and a man bun. He stares at his phone as if his life depends on it, at times popping the screen with his fingers. He doesn’t look up. If his phone was a portal to another dimension he would be a goner. Another guy across from me is wearing white sweatpants with pink shapes. I can’t help but wonder why any dude would wear that, but then people are wearing pajamas in public these days. He too, is staring at his phone.
Another guy to my left is slowly eating a salad. Ahh, hope. Maybe he’ll pull out a book. Or just hang out. But as soon as the salad is gone he whips out his phone and now he’s lost too. A woman to my right pulls out knitting needles and a green ball of yarn and gets into it. Minutes later I look over and her head is down on her knee and she’s sleeping. Or trying to.
Everywhere around me men and women are staring at their phones. I always look at the eyes. With everyone spending so much time on their devices you would think there would be an occasional laugh, look of joy, or some expression of happiness. None of that. They all have a vacant, zoned-out look. No one looks happy, content, even amused. I’m reminded of my teen years when I smoked marijuana and was zoned out half the time.
Two-masks suddenly looks up. He puts his phone down on the chair and stares at the ceiling. He looks drained, as if all the life has been sucked out of him. The moms are still chatting away, smiling, even while tending to their kids, and not a phone in sight.
B.I.P. (Before I-Phone) people at the airport, read newspapers, magazines, and books. Remember USA Today? That was the classic airport read. Fewer people are reading these days. I recently ran into the following survey showing that many Americans don’t do books, whether printed or audio.
The era of Tik Tok and social media has fragmented our brains. Hard to read a book when one has the attention span of a squirrel.
Ohhh noooo. A guy just sat in front of me with the speaker of his phone on. I can’t stand that. Hey man, you ever hear of peace and quiet? It’s even worse when someone plays a video with their speaker on at full tilt. Fantasies of politely taking a sledgehammer to their device and returning it to them in pieces cross my mind.
It’s time to board. I’m in boarding group 5 so it will take a bit. I start making my way toward the gate. I see a couple, talking, smiling – and no phones. They look alive, unlike the phone junkies who fill the room.
I show my boarding pass and board the plane. As I walk down the aisle many are desperately getting their last moments of smartphone time. I have visions of them twitching and going through withdrawals when the dreaded announcement comes to switch off or airplane-mode their phones.
It’s a smart move to evaluate how we’re spending our lives and what we’re giving our time to. Time is our most precious asset. Does what we’re doing bring joy to ourselves and others? Like the two moms? Or do we spend way too many hours alone in the portal to nowhere?
Most importantly, what is all this phone time doing to us spiritually? To our prayer life? To our friendships? Are our brains so screen-fried and fragmented that praying for just 5 minutes feels like a daunting challenge?
