Essay written for my younger daughter speech in 7th Std.
The alarm rings and I snooze the alarm in mobile phone. It rings again. I get up and check the whatsapp messages, facebook feeds and then start to get ready for school. Hot water from Geyser, then bread sandwiches from bread toaster, hot milk from microwave oven. Off to school in father's car. Enter Class room and teacher teaches in smart board and smart pad. Back home in evening chatting with friends, live streaming in PC, play games in mobile. Dinner. Set alarm in mobile phone check whatsapp, facebook and then retire to bed for the day.
Sounds similar to your life style as well. YES. This is what 90% children do today.
Additionally purchases through online apps, travel through online apps, food order through online apps,home work exchange through whatsapp, payments through online apps, list goes on and on. So convenient right. YES 100%. It these gadgets where not there our life would have been totally different. YES DIFFERENT. Please note what I said. I said different and did not say bad/worse etc. Without gadgets life can exist and not really bad life as you may think.
Progression, better time management, more convenience, doing everything right from home, speed of transactions are all boons of technology and gadgets. There is no second opinion on this. It is impossible to think of today's society with out mobile phones and laptops.
These gadgets have indeed helped us in every sphere of progress be it medical, finance, healthcare, consumer service, education, entertainment. All over.
Then what is the problem? Let me tell you. I chat with friends in whatsapp, no eye contact, no personal presence, everything virtual. 100s of friends in whatspp and facebook. But non visits home when I am sick at home. Order everything online, no need to even shake your body. Zero exercise and welcome all diseases of the world. Always on phone call, become more friendly with radiation.
Constantly keep seeing different screens and screen your eyes with spectacles. Purchase new phones in every six months and dispose of old phones, accumulate non-biodegradable waste. Contribute to green-hours effect and increase the earth temperature which leads to melting of ice and flooding of land. So now do you get the Big picture. Every act you do through gadgets has butterfly effect somewhere else and usually this effect is also not for good. These are lead to destruction of earth and human kind.
So what is the solution? As the famous Tamil Quote goes -
"Alavukku minginal, Amruthamum Visham."
Use Electronic gadgets optimally wherever and when ever required. Avoid accumulating and indulging in gadgets forever. For activities that can be done without gadgets, do them without gadgets.
SAVE YOURSELF and SAVE THE WORLD.
