Obsessed With You

Rashi, a middle aged housewife, had just survived a narrow escape from death. She lay in her hospital bed, deep in thought. Multiple fractures and a broken rib had forced her to think what went wrong. A four wheeler had hit her while she was crossing the road. Luckily, the car driver and a few passers-by had some morals left in them. They admitted her to a nearby hospital immediately and called her husband Sudesh. The police had come to interrogate her a few minutes ago. Yes, it had been the driver’s mistake. He should have pulled the brakes on time and not later when the car had already hit her. 50% was his fault.

Rashi was to be blamed for the other 50% and she had accepted her mistake. The driver had honked and honked. If only she wasn’t engrossed in her smartphone, she would have paid attention to the sound of horns pressed by him.

Sudesh and her kids had advised her to reduce her cell phone usage every now and then. Out of the 24 hours in a day, she spent around 18 hours on the phone. Rashi had been so addicted to her phone that she couldn’t live a minute without it. She kept herself busy with constant messaging, social networking and watching videos on YouTube. What had started as a way to pass time, became a habit and then an addiction in no time. She lived in a world of her own, oblivious of the people around her. Even when Sudesh and the kids were at home, she would constantly be glued to her mobile phone.

Rashi listened less, talked lesser and could barely remember a thing. She was sleep deprived too. At times, she even suffered from severe headaches. Whenever her phone beeped, she would run towards it to check her notifications, sparing not even a minute or a second. In order to do so, she would end up burning her chapatis or add excess salt in the gravy.

Her fingers and eyes played with her phone even when she was outside. Most of the times, Rashi bumped into something or someone, not watching the road while walking. Sudesh had been fed up of her ways since she kept herself busy with her phone even at night, making him feel neglected.

They had fought and argued over this topic a number of times. Sudesh did his best to explain to her the negative effects of radiation on her health in the long run. Rashi, an adamant woman, chose not to listen to her family. She didn’t budge even though her attitude was disturbing her relationship with her husband and her kids. She became self-centered, for the sake of a stupid mobile phone. God had taught her a lesson at the right time. A few minutes here and there and she would have either been dead or maybe handicapped for life. Luckily, she survived with temporary scars and fractures which could be healed.

A smartphone created dents in Rashi’s family life which could take years to fill in. She realized that she would have to work hard for it by bringing about certain changes in her daily activities. Sudesh and the kids were willing to help her to do so. She started ditching her mobile phone with an interesting book during her free time. She unsubscribed all the unnecessary notifications she received via e-mail. She fixed particular timings for checking her phone. She got rid of all the unnecessary apps and even started switching off her phone at night.

Nomophobia is a term for those who live with the fear of being without their smartphones. If you try to find one person with Rashi’s symptoms, you will probably find millions. You and me may be one of those too. If not exactly, we might be somewhere closer to her.

It is a fact that today’s generation is obsessed with smartphones and all electronic gadgets. It’s time to mend our ways now, before it’s too late. Let’s not let our dependence and need for them affect our relationship with our near and dear ones. As, when in need, it is a fellow human being who will come and help you from your misery and not your smartphone. Why not implement a few changes now before it’s too late?