My phone, what have you become? If I were to give you a shape or a body…I would say you feel like some heavy listless creature lumped haplessly upon my shoulder. Your arms are stretched out, pawing at my face for my attention, feigning an appetite that can never be satisfied. You are everywhere, weighing me down, keeping me off kilter, preventing me from walking without the fear of toppling over.
You consume my every moment. Your constant unimportant notifications pull me from the here and now. When you go silent, I become concerned. Are you okay? Are we connected? Are your messages coming through?
You have me locked in a torturous cadence. I have to check on you every five minutes. The motions are thoughtless and automatic. There are times I don’t even remember looking. I have become a robot.
I want to feel connected to the world, yet you stand between us like an invisible wall. I want to control my own body yet parts of me have dedicated themselves to you. I do not feel connected. I do not feel here. I do not feel whole.
I think you have to leave.
Originally published at medium.com