We all know how nice it is having the capability to pull out an iPhone and send a Snapchat or iMessage to contact our friends. It eliminates more than half of the work our parents had to do if they wanted to see their friends outside of class growing up.

However, I cannot help but partially blame this technology for our diminishing social skills. I talk to my parents about their lifestyle growing up all the time, simply because I am filled with questions.

How did they pick a time to hang out?

What if something came up and their friends could not make it? Granted, they had home telephones for this scenario.

But seriously, can anyone imagine making a plan and sticking to every aspect of it? I make plans all the time, and while the general plans tend to stick, it is hardly ever without some minor adjustments regarding time and or location. I have a lot of complaints about technology, and this is just one of them.

What about love? My sister and I love discussing my mom’s middle and high-school relationships with her because they were so real and seemingly fun. There was no stigma attached to expressing interest in spending time with one another. The concept of being clingy I am sure still existed, but not to the degree it does today. Nowadays, you are almost expected to resist the urge to contact people that you want to talk to the most.

People still date, or “talk.” It is not the same.

Consequently, parents are always thrown for a loop when the concept of “talking,” is addressed. They do not understand, and quite frankly I do not either.

Why would you put the label of “talking” on your relationship status if you are doing all of the things that people who are dating do?

Does it free one from the burden of commitment?

What benefit do you get from investing your time in someone for it to ultimately fizzle out?

Everything is backward, and the bare minimum has become a hot commodity. Most communication when it comes time to end things that never even really began is done by a third party or a sad excuse for lack of ability to be honest and upfront about anything. In most cases, you know it is over before discussing anything at all. Technology has given us the ability to hide behind the screen of our iPhones and ignore any type of real confrontation.

By no means am I ridiculing anyone else, because I am guilty of this, myself?

It has all just become too easy.

Romantic relationships are not the only thing that is being jeopardized by technological advancements being made. I have sat back and watched as several friendships, amongst girls primarily, have gotten messy. Nowadays we have full capability of screenshotting messages from one friend and sending it to another.

This not only causes problems between the other two parties, but we have all been there and accidentally sent a screenshot of our messages with someone back to that person. People talk about anything and everything via iMessage, and I can only fear for the future in which people finally realize that nothing they say or do is private.

Now we cannot sit back and all boycott technology.

However, I would hate to get to the point where I am sitting down attempting to tell my children stories about my teenage years and have nothing to offer them. Part of the fun in life is enjoying the company of others, and I truly believe if we follow the technological race to the finish line; we will have lost. If we do not start enjoying life for what it is in real-time, there is so much we will have missed.

So, even if it is just for five minutes out of the day, I think it would benefit everyone to put the phone down and enjoy this life we live.