When I was a child, I had a GREAT deal. I would get these ALL EXPENSES paid vacations to cool places! All I had to do to go was be my parent's child - and I did it.
Now, if I want to go away on vacation to a nice hotel like the old days - it is on me. So since I married, I have taken my family on vacation exactly zero times. It is not only because of the money. It is because of a variety of reasons I won't get into here. I am not missing out. It is quite good for me where I am. Plus, I live in Israel which is a vacation spot for so many, so in a way I am on vacation all year long. [We have a pool minutes away - religious people call it a "mikva". 24 hour tea room. Jewish music - I turn on Shwekey or whomever I want whenever I want. Entertainment - I do stand up comedy numerous times a day. A game room for children (the living room). Gourmet meals - when my wife feels like cooking them. Fully stocked Beis Medrash - hebrewbooks.org. And LOTS LOTS MORE!!].
Recently, I got into my head [or maybe the yetzer hara stuck in my head - unclear] that I want to go to a certain place on vacation. I was considering going and then the following thought occurred to me: When I went there in my youth, much of the fun was the social interactions that I enjoyed. There wasn't much else to do other than eat, daven and interact [sometimes all at once๐๐]. It never ONCE happened that someone interrupted a conversation to answer the phone or even LOOKED at their phone or walked around oblivious to their surroundings - staring at their smartphone. Nobody was busy with their computer answering emails, checking their bank accounts or stocks or just surfing the net [although there was a lot of "surfing" in the original sense of the word].
Why not??
BECAUSE THERE WERE NO SMARTPHONES, INTERNET, EMAIL or most of what keeps most people busy most of the day. So we were forced to connect to human beings and not machines. These were the glorious 1970's and 1980's.
Am I suggesting we turn back the clock? No. We need and use technology for many important things. [May I recommend 4 recent DELICIOUS shiurim on Bari Vi-shema in Ksubos 12b in Tosfos. PILEI PILEI PLAOS!! BS"D]. But I do miss when people were emotionally and cognitively present in the room when they were physically present in the room. The Baal Shem Tov famously taught that a person is where his thoughts are. Today, you can have 100 people in a room and nobody is really there. Even when conversing with someone, their mind is partially with the phone. If it isn't, then a call or email will interrupt and then attention will be diverted and conversation over. The days of full presence are OVER.
Sadly.
So I imagine in my minds eye, walking around the lobby of a hotel in the place where I want to go and seeing people texting away, busy in their own virtual world. My fear of disappointment mitigates my desire to go.
Sweet friends! May we be zoche to open our hearts to others and to be fully present, in the moment and focused on the tasks at hand without being swept away by technology. There are many people in Silicon Valley who are busy RIGHT NOW trying to figure out how to get us further addicted to our machines.
Steve Jobs doesn't rest in peace..... How can he, knowing what he has wrought?!
