Caught up in the glowing screen
Foreword: This is a satirical approach on the over dependency of cell phones in today's society, originally written for my ap english class. Maybe this will convince some to turn off their phones and experience life a little more.
Unplugged at 100 percent. Marie grabbed her Iphone and rushed out the door. To be late for her friend’s wedding was not an option. Putting in the address to the church on the gps app was something she did with ease, having spent much time devoting her attention to this small device. Driving there proved to be more difficult in the sense that she felt awkwardly alone. Slide to unlock, playing the Today’s Hits Pandora station in the hopes of demolishing the silence. Still, there was a looming uncomfortable feeling. Might as well tweet about where I’m going, Marie thought. Stopped at a red light, no harm in updating my account. Several autocorrections later, a simple sentence caused the drivers behind her to pass with grimacing expressions. Another distraction taking away from the main goal: to simply get to the wedding on time.
Walking in late, everyone has already been seated. Unable to handle the annoyed eye contact she knew she would receive as she made her entrance, Marie pulled out her phone, kept her head down, and tried to look like she was doing something of great significance. Getting through the ceremony seemed like torture as she felt her phone vibrate in her purse. Marie knew better than to check her messages at such an inappropriate time, but it was the only thing captivating her mind. The vows passed in a blurred mix of words since all Marie could think of was what she was missing, wishing her ever so important companion was resting comfortably in her hand. All the while as the Justice of the Peace spoke of a bond that would never be broken, Marie tried her best to concentrate. She yearned to just glance at her phone, to make sure nothing important was happening without her. It was then that a realization crossed her mind; nothing compares to the commitment she shared with her smart phone. The relationship between the newlyweds, one of love and dedication, was all very relatable to how Marie treated her precious Iphone.
The couple was officially married, everyone was cheering, and Marie was checking her cell phone. The glowing screen revealed its 70 percent battery life. What realistically was about an hour felt like days to Marie, having severe withdrawals from her cell phone. The moment she got out of the church she made sure she checked everything: email and text messages, Facebook and Twitter, Instagram and Vine. What she saw, unsurprisingly, was a lot of updates she had missed in the short while she had put down her phone. Other people fixating over social media, putting whatever they were doing on hold for something more critical, nothing too unordinary. She finally pulled herself away from the distraction and focused on the new task at hand, which would be getting to the reception. Driving there at first was easy. Easy until a familiar text tone sounded and all of Marie’s attention on the road was lost. Steering in a straight line was an obstacle when her eyes were averted to something seemingly urgent in the moment. A ten minute drive altered into a half hour.
Arriving at the reception, the phone battery slowly dwindled to 50 percent. Marie sat down at her assigned table and marveled at how beautiful her meal looked. This surely is Instagram worthy, she thought, taking a quick picture, followed by opening numerous photo editing apps to give it the right filter. By the time she was finished, her meal was cold. For the entirety of the dinner Marie stuck to her phone. She found the face to face communication to be too time consuming; a simple text carried far more importance. She was telling all of her friends who weren’t lucky enough to be there the incredible time she was having, sitting at a table alone thoroughly drawn in to a glowing screen. When the time came for the newlyweds to cut the cake, Marie missed the whole event, checking how many likes she got on her picture. The music started and people gingerly filled up the dance floor. Marie decided she wasn’t one for dancing and instead took photos of the action. For if she didn’t document the wedding and post about it on every social media website, then was she really even there? And truthfully, she did take many nice pictures, pictures of people she didn’t get to meet and activities she didn’t partake in.
Some may say that Marie was wasting her time on her phone, that it distracted her from the whole wedding. What seemed to the other guests as a distraction was really, to Marie, a dedication. And with that said, as her phone ran on it’s 20 percent battery life, Marie knew it was time to go. How awful it would be to attend this wedding alone, without her phone as her shield. Who would she talk to? What would she even do the whole time? The newlyweds seemed busy, Marie didn’t want to bother them and made a note to send a Facebook message later thanking them for the invitation. She drove home quickly, phone resting in her lap where she could easily get it if need be. Often she checked it, swearing as if it had vibrated, when really it hadn’t. At 10 percent battery life, Marie was driving through a few stop signs. Finally reaching home, she did not take off her coat, or shoes, but went right for the charger. The soothing sound indicating her phone was properly plugged in lifted the anxiety off of her chest. It was a good day, thought Marie, checking her phone for anything she might’ve missed while driving home. This is how she stayed until eventually she fell asleep with her phone right next to her on the nightstand until tomorrow morning. And tomorrow morning the motions would all begin again, unplugged at 100 percent.
