Watched a movie tonight, Contact, from 1997 with Jodie Foster and Matthew McConaughey along with other familiar faces in it.

It was an ok movie. Jodie was mehhhh in it, but I’m not here to talk about the actual movie. It was something that Matthew’s character said (he played a minister and writer in it) that I want to discuss.

I can’t quote exactly what he said but the idea of what he said got me thinking…

He said something like ‘with all the technology we have going for us today, we as a people find ourselves more isolated and alone than ever before’. Now remember this movie was done in 1997, and today we are even more deeply intrenched in a technological lifestyle than when the movie came out.

My question is… Why are we?

We as a species are the most social animals on the planet yet we chose to accept distancing, isolating, hiding behind screens, monitors, tablets, etc.

Sometimes bigger isn’t always better, more isn’t always good, and definitely having everything at our fingertips isn’t exactly the best for us.

I personally miss the yesteryears of snailmail, penpals, coffee meetups, roadtrips to Grandma’s for Sunday dinner, or hanging out at the local ice-cream shop after dark with my friends before walking home to see my family.

Maybe we need more of that and put down the tablets, computer games, video chats, turn off the news and look up.

Go outside, see the moon with our own eyes. Try counting the stars while lying on the hood of dad’s old Chevy, as we listen to crickets by the lake, laughing with friends.

It might just be what this planet and the people of this earth need to bring us closer together, than we have been in a long long time.