Yesterday I wrote about living with the windows open. I love having the windows open. I love the sounds of nature and the breezes. Nothing like fresh air. I wrote my little story, chuckling a bit, tongue in cheek. After posting it and giving the subject some more thought I thought maybe it has something to do with the way the our country is today. We are isolated inside our homes and offices. You must be invited in. That was not always the case. With the closing of the windows have we also closed our hearts ?
All the devices man has invented to entertain himself has also served to isolate us from one another. You could say it started with radio. Families would gather around that marvel to listen to news from the outside world and music. It was only for a few hours in the evening but it was a beginning. Then television, and we have progressed steadily since then. In the 1950's air conditioning units become affordable and available to the everyday household. That is when the windows get closed ! The isolation increases. Now we don't go sit on the porch on those hot,humid nights to escape, now we just stay indoors. Front porches begin to give way to the rear deck. We begin to fence in the yard and surround those decks for privacy. In reality further isolation, now it is by invitation only. No longer are your neighbors strolling by the front porch and saying good evening and perhaps being invited to stop for a cold drink of lemonade. We have retreated to our fortresses.
I see many people walking around today, in public, yet isolated from those around them. Their mind is on their smart phone. They are talking or sending text messages oblivious to those around them. We have finally found a way to avoid being social. We have a method to entertain ourselves all the time, wherever we may be. We can even travel in groups yet not interact with each other in that group ! The world is all about me.
Now it seems like there are a myriad of social problems and issues. I wonder why that could be ? Might it be the result of the lack of socialization skills ? Could it just be that the reality of the world is in conflict with all these isolated little worlds that we live in ? I am no sociologist but that is a theory I have. Too many of us do not even know our neighbors anymore. Was a day when you knew everyone on the street.
Well, for all my talking and writing about it I will put the air conditioner in the window. The others will all be closed when the real heat comes. Yup, when the heat is on I am no different. For a few weeks or a month however the windows will be open. If you stroll by I'll be on the porch, out front, give me a shout. That is unless the bugs are out, then I'll retreat. After all, there is always the history channel !
All the devices man has invented to entertain himself has also served to isolate us from one another. You could say it started with radio. Families would gather around that marvel to listen to news from the outside world and music. It was only for a few hours in the evening but it was a beginning. Then television, and we have progressed steadily since then. In the 1950's air conditioning units become affordable and available to the everyday household. That is when the windows get closed ! The isolation increases. Now we don't go sit on the porch on those hot,humid nights to escape, now we just stay indoors. Front porches begin to give way to the rear deck. We begin to fence in the yard and surround those decks for privacy. In reality further isolation, now it is by invitation only. No longer are your neighbors strolling by the front porch and saying good evening and perhaps being invited to stop for a cold drink of lemonade. We have retreated to our fortresses.
I see many people walking around today, in public, yet isolated from those around them. Their mind is on their smart phone. They are talking or sending text messages oblivious to those around them. We have finally found a way to avoid being social. We have a method to entertain ourselves all the time, wherever we may be. We can even travel in groups yet not interact with each other in that group ! The world is all about me.
Now it seems like there are a myriad of social problems and issues. I wonder why that could be ? Might it be the result of the lack of socialization skills ? Could it just be that the reality of the world is in conflict with all these isolated little worlds that we live in ? I am no sociologist but that is a theory I have. Too many of us do not even know our neighbors anymore. Was a day when you knew everyone on the street.
Well, for all my talking and writing about it I will put the air conditioner in the window. The others will all be closed when the real heat comes. Yup, when the heat is on I am no different. For a few weeks or a month however the windows will be open. If you stroll by I'll be on the porch, out front, give me a shout. That is unless the bugs are out, then I'll retreat. After all, there is always the history channel !
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