Lately, I've been thinking a lot about what it would have been like to be a 20-year-old in a different era, more specifically, an era that isn't so obsessed with digital technology. I look around me, and I see faces illuminated by screens and headphones jammed into ears. Physically, everyone I see is there, but their minds are somewhere else. The digital age has enabled us to become more absent-minded than ever before, and I'm just not sure how I feel about it.

I love the connectivity of our world. I love how fast I can obtain whatever information I wish to know. I love how I can communicate and stay in touch with family and friends I don't get to see often with just the click of a button. I love how I never have to miss out on anything, ever. The entire world sits at my fingertips, and it's hard for me to imagine living without this technology.

What worries me is the growing amount of importance we are placing on the use of digital technology and everything that comes along with it. When I go out to a party or a bar, I watch people spend half of their night trying to get the perfect picture to post on Instagram, or filming the entirety of the evening on their Snapchat. Don't let my judgmental tone fool you, I'm just as guilty of obsessing over my phone as everyone else is. I feel like I might just be a little bit more aware of the amount of energy we're pouring into our electronics than some of my peers are.

When I think of the word "social", I think of interacting with other people, conversation, or doing things in groups or with a partner. To be "social" is to be personal and inquisitive of others. The digital age has altered what it means to be "social" forever. We as humans have the ability to classify ourselves as social people, without even having to speak in real life to one another. In fact, you can have an infinite number of social interactions going on at one time, and you don't have to physically speak a word. Isn't that kind of unbelievable? Thanks to digital technology, it's not.

As a student interested in pursuing a career in journalism, I feel naturally compelled to talk to people, about anything at all. I truly enjoy learning the stories of the people I meet, and I often find myself asking question after question, just trying to get to know someone better. I feel that this has helped me see the value behind an in-person, real-life interaction.

There's so much to be said for maintaining a genuine connection with someone. When I spend time with family and friends, I try to make it a point to stay off of my phone while I'm with them. I want to experience every moment I'm alive to it's fullest potential. I want to see all there is to see and feel all there is to feel. I would hate to look back on my youth and have more memories of staring at the screen in my hand than absorbing the world around me.

I've been a waitress for about a year now, and I can't even begin to describe the number of people I serve who would rather sit on their phones than have a conversation and interact with one another throughout dinner. It's honestly astounding. Parents, couples, kids, babies. I watch as they scroll mindlessly through their Facebook feeds, stream tv shows, and text their friends. Sometimes I'll see a family finish an entire meal without saying more than a few words to each other. It breaks my heart because it's setting an example for today's kids, telling them it's okay to be anti-social, and there's no need to actually ask about each other's days. I fear the day that in-person conversations become a thing of the past and we all just communicate through texts. The more I think about it, the more I feel as if we're already there.

I guess what I'm getting at is there's so much more out there than the superficiality of the digital world. Who gives a damn how many likes your last selfie got or how many followers you have? Be more concerned with living this life to its maximum potential than making sure you get at least one hot picture of you at the bar so your ex-boyfriend will see it and know you're totally over him. This is the only life we get people! Take every moment and live it. Be present in your world, and experience every day.