Our Shields from Serendipity
Engaging with another person in the time it takes to buy coffee has come to be an act of bravery.
It’s because we now carry with us little rectangular shields from face-to-face sociability — our phones, which also shield us from serendipity.
When we avoid real-life connections, we avoid the possibility. We scroll through social media while waiting for coffee, curious about those around us. We stuff speakers in our ears and tune out those around us, signaling that our minds are in other places.
As we move through life, engaged with our phones, we are blocking out dozens of tiny meaningful pathways for connection. We shut out life all around us, limiting our access to the warmth of other people.
Even with the portal for connection that is the internet perpetually in our grasp, we remain lonely — perhaps lonelier than ever — lost in a stew of content.
