I get it. People are busy, and we shouldn't constantly be on our phones all the time, or else we will inevitably miss the things that are going on all around us. But, it is ignorant to not admit that, even though everyone has many responsibilities and things to get done everyday, we are all very much connected. Social media, text messages, phone calls, emails, and more - we have virtually our entire worlds at our fingertips at any minute of the day.

That is, if the people we reach out to actually bother to respond. My greatest pet peeve is when people let their messages build up to the point where they are days late in their response. Or, even worse, just never bother to respond. No one is that busy, especially if you are still maintaining your Snapchat streaks and liking my Instagram pictures, all while my text from a day and a half ago remains unread.

I am not even asking for a long, well thought out response, either. While that is always very much appreciated, acknowledging the fact that I sent you something, even if it is just to say you are busy and will look into whatever it is later, that is far better than leaving me hanging. If you have time to scroll mindlessly through twitter, you have time to respond to your unanswered emails, phone calls, and texts. Don't tell me you are bad at responding in a timely manner - you choose to not respond, you choose to push it off to read later, and therefore, whether intentionally or not, choose to be rude.

So, to the people who have let their unread messages notification reach a number higher than 10, my message, if you choose to read it, is simple: respond. No response at this point is too late, and if it is, apologize if you actually mean it. This isn't a hard thing to do, and it really does make a difference. The occasional late response with a legit excuse is acceptable, but to be consistently late is to consistently put yourself before anyone else's needs. Everyone has stuff going on, being "busy" and having a long to-do list is not unique to you. But someone actually took time out of their day, their busy schedule, to send you a message. Do them the courtesy of responding in a timely manner, if you want that same sort of respect in return.