Over Spring Break, my laptop crashed. Yes it was my fault, but during that time, someone also stole my bike, which was not my fault. It put me in quite the pickle, though it was more like a gherkin than an actual pickle, tasting it for the first time and realizing it's actually a pretty pleasant experience.
I've been using the various computers around campus in the library and the computer lab, so now, as I type, I am in the company of other young people. And I must say... I like it.
A couple nights ago, I was walking across campus and felt an unexpected and overwhelming sense of loneliness. Of course, once I felt it, I chased it out of my head like a bad dream and proceeded to walk to the computer lab, where my college counterparts were busily typing and chatting, working on last-minute essays, putting together procrastinated presentations, and cruising Facebook.
And since this whole computer lab/library thing has become somewhat of a nightly ritual at the end of this semester, I found myself yet again in the same environment, this time working on an essay for English, a short manifesto assignment called "This I Believe." I titled it What Ties Us All Together.
Maybe the title spawned from my One Love spirit or just the simple fact that I had been unwittingly surrounding myself with people more frequently than usual over the past month. Either way, I felt inclined to talk about my love of humanity, so in essence, I briefly wrote about what I think makes humanity one big family. It made me feel all warm and fuzzy just typing about it, the voice in my head reading it out loud like a soft whir.
None of us are ever truly alone. If we feel that way, it's because our minds have tricked us into believing it.
Yet, technology has brought us closer together and at the same time driven us apart. Ironically, social media has altered the way we connect with one another so dramatically that we forget how closely connected we actually are. It's easy to get lost in the endless status updates and picture posts. It's easy to feel alienated when you're not part of the "activities" happening onscreen before your tired eyes. A whole crowd of people could be "online" but no one talks to one another. Instead, we sit in silence, interacting with one another through Likes and Comments instead of one-on-one communication.
Think about all the contacts in your cell phone. When was the last time you spoke to one-tenth of them?
I forget on a daily basis that my family is just a phone call, or for the most part, a twenty minute car ride, away. Where does loneliness fit into this equation? When I really think about it, it doesn't make sense. Why would I ever feel lonely when I: A.) live on a campus filled with people my age, including many of my friends, B.) have the means to instantaneously connect with virtually any of my friends or family anytime, or C.) am rarely within five feet of the nearest human being?
Sometimes, a mind can seem like a bundle of contradictions.
