I was at a family function recently. As usual i am not familiar with many faces who attended the function. Thankfully i had my headphones in pocket. Got it out and started listening to my mobile playlist.
The song barely crossed the first stanza when one of my friends came near me and started talking about his future. Sensing that i am there for interacting with people (which is quiet rare these days), i paused the song and listened to him and even discussed my future plans.
He then went away to see his friend, i then resumed the playlist. The song again crossed second part when one of my distant relative came near me and asked me if i am Sujatha's son. Again sensing that i should start having a conversation, i stopped the playlist and talked for another 15 min or so.
This process of pausing and resuming the song happened exactly thrice. I was a bit irritated, as i was not able to do either my conversation completely nor listening to my playlist.
To manage the irritation i had two choices.
1. I can either completely remove my headphones, keep my mobile back in pocket and start having conversations randomly with my relatives (many of whom have only seen me the last time, when i cried in cradle 23 years ago). But after contemplating and immense planning (Indian you see !!!), i have bought a Panasonic headphone with improved bass and i was loving even the most worst songs when i listened through it (As an e.g. i had a self-recorded song sung by me, astonishingly i loved it and Panasonic indeed is a good company, i retorted).
2. My second choice obviously will be to sit in a corner with headphones shunning all conversations and talk. I would be perceived as calm and shy by one section of relatives and as introvert and lacking social skills by another section. But that would be bad, as relations unlike other countries is the thread of life. We also have a saying which goes "You should always have 4 relatives, at least to lift you when you are dead".
What will i choose? Slowly the irritation of not talking to relatives or listening to songs was replaced by the irritation of choosing between the above two options.
Thinking that i have to do something i slid my mobile back into pocket along with the headphones, when my cousin from Mumbai asked "Hey Naresh, is that a new mobile in your pocket? Which model is it? What is the pixel of front camera?”
I was already irritated that my mind was cornered to select one of the two options above and now the same is replaced by the irritation borne out of my cousin's question.
Calming myself i started answering his question when my mother called, saying that one of my relatives want to see how i look now, as she is seeing me after15 yrs. (I still look like human, please !!!). I started walking towards my mother when again my cousin interrupted "Naresh you have not answered my question yet".
Again a situation where i have to choose between where to go and whom to answer first.
The root cause is very simple "HEADPHONE" and "CELLPHONE". If i have not carried these two stuffs with me this would not have happened.
Think of it.
I attended the function to converse and get to know my friends and relatives better. I do not need my mobile and headphone for this. They are actually out of place. Saying that i have an important call from office, so i took my cell phone or other reasons is invalid. If you have an office call attend the call, then come to the gathering. None of your relatives will be disgusted on seeing us coming late (except your spouses. I cannot help out in this case. Some are human problems and some are, problems in human form!!!).
When we bath we bath, when we brush we brush. Though all our basic activities have remained quiet simple all these years, the dynamic activities like office work and family conversations are becoming complicated just because we multitask.
How many of you are bathing while simultaneously brushing the teeth? Then why are we planning to take an office call while attending a family function.
Saying you cannot live without your mobile or any piece of technology is crap. When everything in life has an alternative (leave parents) why not technology or the office calls which arose from it?
"Though you may have all comforts in life always choose on what comforts to carry with you when going out". Always this choice of ours will be right, when you are clear on what needs to be done in the place where we go.
A technologically advanced human, is not the one with the latest iPhone or DSLR camera, but the one who has both, and knows WHEN, WHERE and HOW to use it.
With love and without headphones from Chennai.
