Technology has allowed us to progress as a society. There have been discoveries in science and medicine and changes to how we do everyday things.These are all good, but it is also hurting us. We have become glued to our phones, laptops, and tablets, and are becoming less independent.

Part of our dependency to technology is convenience. We can now call or text someone if we have a question. We have email to send "letters" faster than the postal service. We can write our papers on a computer faster than we can handwrite them. Even this article is typed. We go on social media and watch other people do things even though we are hundreds of miles away. We have been brought closer to people in other cities and states, but further away from the people right next to us.

It is almost as if we have become robots. Most of us wake up in the morning and probably check our phones to see who called or texted us. I know there have been mornings where I wake up and stay in bed for an hour aimlessly scrolling through social media. We do everything with our phones in hand. If we leave our phones at home, then we turn around and go get it.

Almost every school in the country uses technology to help educate students. This has allowed parents quick access to their child's grades and progress and has also cut down on paper waste. A downside to this is that if anything happens to the system the schools are using, then all information can be lost or teachers won't be able to teach their classes. You also have students who get distracted in class by their cellphones or laptops.

Now, I'm not here to bash all technology. Technology is a great thing, but too much of anything is bad for you. We need to allow ourselves to unplug. We have become fascinated with seeing what other people are doing with their lives that we forget to live our own. It's time for us to unplug a little bit more each day. Technology and social media are great, but we need to be making memories instead of watching other people post them.