Tag: mobile phones

woman writing a letter

Journal (The forgotten art of writing letters)

Published on by Maciej Modzelewski1 Comment

I miss the mostly forgotten art of writing letters. For centuries, millennia really, epistolography was at the heart of our social life, with letters as one of the means of communication helping maintain relationships and exchange thoughts and ideas, but now the only letters most of us are receiving are notices from the government—even utility bills and bank statements arrive electronically, which is actually a good thing considering the environmental impact—and perhaps Christmas cards. Nowadays, it’s not even email that has taken over, but all kinds of instant messengers on our mobile phones and social networking sites. This fragmented, casual, surface-level communication negatively impacts our ability to formulate more complex thoughts. And, by the way, our reading habits don’t help either.

I just looked at the clock on my dresser and realised it took me an hour to write this paragraph. What happened to me? Why am I so distracted? After all, for years, writing was my daily bread because I earned my living as a journalist. And now this! I really hope this journal will help prevent further degradation.

people busy with their mobile phones, oil painting in the style of Paul Klee

Rhymester, read thyself

Published on by Maciej Modzelewski2 Comments

“You have lost your wits and have gone astray; and, like an unskilled doctor, fallen ill, you lose heart and cannot discover by which remedies to cure your own disease.”
Aeschylus, Prometheus Bound

With mobile phones, we have become accustomed to immediate responses,
so no one wants to wait for anything anymore. Add to that the quality
of our relationships—likely comparable to the nutritional value
of a plastic bowl of instant noodles—and it’s no wonder we are trapped
between the Scylla of solitude and the Charybdis of addiction to dating apps,
ending up lonely one way or another.

Dealing with people sooner or later brings disappointment. I get that.
But we all have our quirks and neglected issues, so maybe it’s time
to stop being harder on others than on yourself.
Give them a chance, and they may pleasantly surprise you,
said the one least likely to read his own words.