A friend of mine recently introduced me to Relient K’s song "Look on Up." Let me tell you... if you’ve never had a song make you contemplate life before, then either this is the song that will or you have no heart or conscience. Regardless, this song inspired me to think a little more critically about my life and to have a greater appreciation for it.
Essentially, this song arouses strong desires to enjoy the beauty within our lives for all that it is worth. Too often people enjoy life from behind their phones and computers. They try to capture the most Instagram-worthy photo, they spend so much time making sure they get the right pose and the right caption, and they forget about the beauty of the background.
The Internet and the devices we hold in our hands present to us mere reflections of what life truly is. These manmade objects cannot adequately capture God’s miraculous creations that continually surround us. They cannot capture the feeling of the wind as it sends shivers down your back. They cannot capture the fresh, petrichor scent after the first rain of the season.
They cannot capture the way water will ripple as you skip stones across its surface. They cannot capture the way the sun glints off of your significant other’s hair, or even their bald spot. They cannot capture the scent of a fall bonfire or the image of flames licking the burning wood.
They cannot capture the sound of the trees rustling in the wind or the sounds of a forest when you’re the only one for miles around. They cannot capture the warmth you feel when someone you love puts their arm around you.
These devices we keep by our side every minute of every day handicap us. They inhibit our abilities to appreciate nature and the tiny miracles of everyday life.
This summer, most of us college students are probably already enjoying our paper free, assignment free, class free schedules. It’s a near guarantee that everyone reading this has already logged onto Netflix several times, scrolled through Facebook and Twitter so many times you could perfectly recite what Hannah said last Tuesday at 9 p.m. and has spent countless hours texting significant others and friends. After all, if you don’t send that last "LOL" text, the world may stop spinning.
Now, here is a crazy idea: Instead of using these precious hours of free time on Netflix or social media, go outside. Check out that bright shiny thing in the sky — it’s called the sun, in case you were wondering.
Go dance in the rain, breathe in the fresh aroma of blooming flowers and spend time with those you love. Be in the moment, really and truly. Pour your concentration, heart, body and soul into appreciating the gifts God has given us.
Many of us have been blessed with the ability to see; use that gift to go see the ocean, watch the sun rise or go star gazing. Use every sense you have — sight, smell, taste, touch and hearing — to really begin experiencing life.
Our screens limit us to a two-dimensional world; do not succumb to that confinement.
Go out and enjoy life. Remember, though, do not worry about what a great Snapchat this would make or how many likes your Instagram photo would get. Put down your device, forget it even exists and better yourself somewhere between the ground and the sky of this miraculous world we have before us.
