My social media dilemma

“No!” I thought to myself, “I will not open it”.  Today, I revolted; I revolted against Facebook with all it’s distractions and nuances vying for my prized attention.                                                                                    

It all started with a blue icon beeping every 4 seconds on my phone’s LED indicator. As I glanced at my phone, I could not resist the urge to check who or what had sent me a message. I now know what each flashing light signifies. Blue beckons me to check my emails, greenish-yellow calls me to Whatsapp and red wants me to check my blackberry messenger. On this occasion, blue was calling and like an obedient child I picked up my phone to answer its call. I was expecting a junk email as I normally get those at this time of the day for some unknown reason. But to my surprise, I had a notification email from Facebook sitting in my inbox, asking me to check out what my friends had been up to on Facebook. I scrolled down the email to see some summary updates Facebook had so kindly delivered to my inbox (unsolicited). I was annoyed. Annoyed because I’m pretty sure I had turned off notifications from Facebook, having no desire to be contacted each time someone liked a picture, put up a picture or made a comment. Facebook had clearly ignored my requests at privacy and done the unthinkable by sending me unsolicited emails.  But even as I was annoyed, the urge to open up my Facebook app and indeed check out what people were up to was so strong! But I resisted. I was not going to be manipulated into doing something I had every intention of doing in my own time, before it’s time.

As I pondered and was amused at my own revolting against what seems to be  no big deal, it occurred to me that had I opened Facebook I would have acquiesced to exactly what Facebook wants me to do. It seems to me to be some kind of twisted relationship between virtual master and servant where unconsciously, the very thing of which I am supposed to be master, has become a master of me. The very thing which was supposed to bring me entertainment has now brought me under slavery to its demands, vying for my attention and time whether I like it or not. And as I thought about it, I wondered what else in my life I have now become slave to without my knowledge. What other “distraction” in the form of entertainment or necessity have I unconsciously given control to, though I may think I have control over it? You see, I would have gone to Facebook anyway, but in my own time and on my own terms, not when Facebook decides that I should go to it! Tsk…

If you’re reading this and wondering why this seems to be an issue for something seemingly so small, never mind. Maybe it’s just the suspicious technologist in me revolting against technology and it’s power over humans which we sometimes give to it. Even now  as I read through this post, I realize that if Facebook had not sent me that email, I would not have thought about this and if I had not thought about it, I would not be writing this post. So in the end, my time has been taken up in ways that I did not plan but nonetheless I find beneficial because capturing these thoughts into words brings to the forefront of my consciousness the many seemingly little things that distract and pull us in directions we never intended. With all of this comes the realization that mind discipline is of utmost importance in this age we are living in where so many things vie for our attention with the promise of fleeting entertainment and satisfaction. So as I end this post I ask myself, how much valuable time has been wasted all because I could not apply discipline and self control?