The Digital Age

 

THINGS I AM GRATEFUL FOR IN 2023

The Digital Age

If you grew up in the seventies and eighties, then I know that you have a great appreciation for the digital age. The analogue era of call-boxes, typewriters, mail boxes, and telegrams has been heavily over-shadowed by the new technology that they have become obsolete. Personally, I am grateful for the new age technology, yet I also get nostalgic of the old tech too. Both have really impacted my life in a major way.

In the yesterdays, whenever one wanted to make a call, they would either go to the rich neighbour’s house and ask to make the call on their land line or travel the distance to locate a phone booth, with a few pennies at hand. Incase one was broke, they would result to make a reverse call to the receiver’s expense. But today, everybody has a mobile phone in their hands and their loved ones are only one phone call away.

A mobile phone these days is as common as water. Every Tom, Dick and Harry possesses one or two of the gadgets, accelerating the ease in communication. Not only can one make calls but they can also send text and electronic messages, and have access to social media, through the use of the internet. The internet has made the entire world a global village, where any kind information can be accessed in an instant at the comfort of one’s home. The internet has created great businesses, partnerships, and a commune of soul tribes online, making the world a much smaller place.

In remote areas where phones were unavailable, then the government of the day would ensure that there was at least a post office, for those who were literate enough to communicate to their relations through letter-writing. Gone are the days where romantic love was expressed in a sturdy handwriting and golden words. It took about a week for expectant love birds to communicate to each other. I still have a stack of those old memories hidden in my old high-school jua kali metal box. Perhaps one sweet day, I will be able to show off to my daughter the how life was simply beautiful.

Today, it is all about text and electronic messaging. Nothing gets faster to you than a short text message. I mean, it is instant and right on your face. In a second, somebody has replied to your message and in the next second, they have received your response. While this is good and beneficial, it takes away the anticipation, the curiosity, and the allure of the message.

With letter writing, the sender took their time to organize their thoughts in a long read, showcasing their word play in style and fashion. Whenever you received the letter to open and read, you already were in a cloud nine moment, for you just knew that the read was going to be explosive and mind-boggling. But it is not so with text messaging. Some people prefer to shorten the already short messages, while some do not even bother to honour you with their words, because they let emojis do the talking for them. Am I the only one enraged by this?

But incase you needed to send a message or money even faster, then the telegram was your ideal choice. It was not that fast anyway, as you had to wait a few days before the money got to you. But whoever who invented m-pesa money transfer, may God give you a golden ticket straight to heaven, for this great invention. Thanks to your incredible ingenuity, we are all able to send and receive money at the touch of a button.

Show me a Kenyan who does not use the m-pesa services and I will show you person who is either blind or dead. Even our neighbouring nations have tapped on to using this genius invention. Of course, there are many services of this kind across the world but a Kenyan thought of this, so it must count for something. Very soon, you will hear of another invention where someone out here has figured out an even easier way of revolutionizing the m-pesa services through telepathy. In this age, anything is possible.

Gone are the days of hand-written or type-writing letters. The computer will do all that for you. There has been an expansion of programming and software that have been updated to suit the needs of the clientele. Nowadays, all you need to do is voice out your thoughts and the computer will pick your words and text write them on your behalf. No need to struggle with writing down your words. It is the job of the computer to pen down your words in a digital fashion. The computer will not only jot down your words but correct all the imperfections within the text. How about that?

Just when you think that the invention above is top notch, the computer has the ability to answer almost all your questions. All you need to do is ask and you shall receive all the answers you need, whether at home or at work or even in your car. This ingenuity is unique and beneficial in that it can been customized and tailored to suit your own needs. This technology is not cheap, as you must have the purchasing power to access it. This is one heck of an invention that will last for generations to come.

The only downside to this digital age is that as people become increasingly dependent upon it, the more they become addicted to it, and the more they become anti-social. Therefore, ensure to detox from technology twice every week, by shutting down every techo-gadget, go out to the sun and breath fresh air, find new hobbies, as you reconnect with friends and family.