While watching "The Secret Life of Pets" yesterday in a movie theater, lost in a plush reclining seat and overwhelmed by a 20’ by 50’ screen, I had a weird realization. Movie theaters are essentially giant living rooms that we pay to sit in with 50-plus other strangers. We get to hear ourselves laugh and cry with people we will probably never see again, or may have not seen at all because we got into the movie a little late. It’s pretty vulnerable, if you think about it. I almost shouted, “Guys, isn’t this fun?” in the pause before the movie began.
Anyway, this particular article is inspired by the enormity of the recliners.
Within the past 50 years, America has dramatically increased its investment in super malls, giant flat screens, bigger advertisements (billboards) and overindulgent food portions. Our entrepreneurs know that, while over-stimulation produces a greater initial response from its consumers, the consumers will soon accept it as normal and then require greater stimulation.
It causes an unnatural but productive progression into blind consumerism that, up until recently, has been assisting in national obesity, selfishness and unhappiness.
I have lost count of how many times I have heard teachers, parents and grandparents comment on how they wish people would wake up and realize that bigger screens and faster cars don’t bring happiness. People do. Memories do. I have had a hard time believing them. I grew up without cell phones, cable and the unfettered freedom that everyone else seemed to live in and take for granted. I’m a wisher, so I would spend days over at friends’ houses, reveling in their freedom and resenting the rules that governed my own home.
However, I wouldn’t trade those years without technology for anything. I love living without a smart phone (I do have a Tracfone). Being and talking with people is one of my favorite things to do, and I have not found any part of my life—social, physical or spiritual—that has suffered because of the rules I grew up in.
A show that strengthens my faith in America’s move away from consumerism is “Tiny House, Big Living.” It is encouraging in that it shows that young adults are putting more value in how they are living than in the things they have. With so much stimulation coming at us from every direction, it is becoming clear that millennials and all who have grown up with technology are realizing that instead of being controlled and distracted by advancements, they can use technology to assist them in minimalist living. Plus-sized, expensive things have no comparable value against experiences.
I do not place much weight on the words of those who say that my generation is done for. We are fast learners, we have seen a lot of turmoil around the world and been faced with demands for us to deal with it. We know we have a voice and how to use it (though perhaps sometimes we are a bit too liberal with our opinions). I know that God has not abandoned this nation, and He certainly hasn’t stopped moving among its people.
DOWN WITH PLUSH MOVIE SEATS! YES TO TINY HOUSES!
