Over winter break, in a moment of careful introspection, I realized I had a strange addiction.

Every day I would meet an old friend for lunch, go shopping, hit the gym, the movies and countless other pleasurable activities. I realized I was cataloguing every single activity online. I was infatuated with recording my activities on Snapchat and Instagram.

As I look back, I seriously question my inherent desire to constantly record my life online. Likewise, I notice it isn’t just me doing this. It’s an epidemic spreading through our society.

We are obsessed with recording our lives online. Unfortunately, I find that we are losing the ability to fully live.

I remember my days as a child and how I would spend every waking minute of my breaks outside.

I loved building forts, sledding, riding my bike, and sleepovers with friends. I felt as though I was taking full advantage of life. I garnered immense joy, but more importantly, I remember the intricate details of these activities with unobstructed clarity.

Conversely, I try to recall my recent winter break, and I find the memories are murky. It’s because I was so preoccupied with recording my every activity. I was failing to experience the visceral elements.

So, what precisely does this mean?

First, I should be clear in my attitude towards technology and social media. I believe social media is profoundly innovative. Similarly, the potential benefits for global society are endless.

Nevertheless, I fear we are failing to realize specifically how social media is changing society.

When we post something online we’re expecting judgment, and ultimately that’s the inherent goal we are striving to achieve. But life’s experiences should not be predicated by others judgments. Rather, one should have no qualms or trepidations. Deriving pleasure should be wholly one’s own inward experience.

I’m afraid our society is morphing into a strange dystopian type of interaction between humans and electronic screens. A part of this is the temporality with which our social media exists. When we post online we know it is temporary, sometimes just a few seconds. We know our experiences online will inevitably disappear.

It is precisely this nature of activity that I find disturbing. We remember better when we are forced to catalogue our memories as they happen, with no distractions, just our cognitive focus.

I’m not trying to claim that we completely disconnect. Instead, we all need to focus on this technological change and realize how our individual lives are becoming more complex.

With this understanding I believe we can all cut back. We should reserve social media as a major alternative to actual social interaction. Going about life’s many activities without recording them for social media will allow for more rewarding experiences.

Give it a try. Don’t worry about the presence you carry online. Simply experience life without a connection to a smartphone. I can guarantee experiences will be much more gratifying.

Colin Mummery is a staff writer for The Dakota Student. He can be reached at [email protected].