I’ve spent far less time on Facebook in the last few days and it feels wonderful. I’ve spent much more time with my mom, with Jesus, journaling, reading poetry, and relaxing. What a better use of my time.

Which leads me to my topic…

My mom is a theater teacher at my old high school. She teaches drama classes and directs shows and she’s told me that each year, her incoming students seem to be less intuitive and less creative than the students before them. They don’t seem to catch on as quickly nor can they express themselves as well. Interesting?

Also, a guy that works in admissions at my school was talking with Ryan and telling him how, each year the incoming freshman class seems less mature than the one before. And not just because he is getting older, but because they legitimately are less mature than the class before them was at the same time the year prior. Intriguing?

I have a theory.

My generation was raised on computers. I had a Xanga when I was 14, then I progressed on to Myspace, then added texting, Facebook, Twitter, etc. Unlike the generations before me, I can have instant and constant communication with anyone I want. I can update anyone with my status, post pictures for everyone to see, and instant message anyone that is online. My generation has gotten so used to this. So much of our communication is the interpretation of words on a screen. We can portray any version of ourselves that we wish to on cyberspace. We maintain relationships via cyberspace. Words. On a screen. No voice inflection. No body cues. No subtle implications from our tone. Simply words.

I do think that social networking and texting is a great way to stay in touch. To a certain extent. But, I think it is evident that we’ve become so reliant on it that we have lost the art of real relationships.

Just a theory.

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