The way our society and world now functions truly disappoints me. I admit I fall culprit to this intense trend of social media (besides Pokémon Go -- never will I succumb to that). I love taking and posting pictures, adding my own artistic touch (it shows expression) and the ability to see what friends are doing within seconds of clicking on their Snapchat stories, or scrolling down Facebook and getting news updates with out having to turn on CNN. The world is revolutionizing incredibly fast, as positive as it may seem to the new generations, as it is all they have grown up knowing.

I realized something a few days ago. My iPhone completely broke (onto my ninth… clearly a little clumsy) and for the ninth time I was completely devastated. I was forced to enjoy my environment, not sit on my phone within the environment. I looked at the world in a different way, for pure enjoyment and noticing the true beauty. When my phone happened to break I was in Newport, Rhode Island with my best friends, one of the oldest and most historical found towns in America. We were exploring cliffs and the immaculate beauty Rhode Island had to offer. At first I was thinking in my head how pissed off I was I couldn’t take a Snapchat story of the scenery or be in contact with whoever I was messaging and then I realized, who cares?

I was absorbed in the atmosphere around me and not my phone. It felt good not having to feel responsible to be communicating with others. It felt nice to be cut off. It reminded me of when I was a little girl when my best friend and I would climb trees so high we got stuck or when we would go on searches to find and collect bugs (preferably bright green inch worms) or when we would go upstate and run through the corn fields or go on the quads through the mountains to reach the top and see everything below, or being at the barn with the horses from sunrise to sunset… these were times I was the most happy. The times when the iPhone was not even a thought in the mind of its creator.

Now that the insurance company sent me my new phone, I questioned whether or not I should activate it right away. Of course, I did, I’m a basic 19-year-old girl, a part of the generation where the phone is everything, but for a split second I wished I was back on those cliffs with no contact with anyone. I was exploring with my eyes and mind not through the lens of a camera. I encourage you to take a trip, whether minutes or hours away, to a special place with a special person that you truly connect with. Together, turn your phone off and experience your surroundings. I promise you will love it.