In the Name of Allah, the Ever-Compassionate, the Ever-Merciful
Humans are always questioning things and wondering about how life would, or would not, be under different circumstances and with different resources. Many of these questions have the cliché beginning, "I wonder what life would be like without..." Most of these questions are just random imaginations which we enjoy running through our minds. Interestingly, if such a situation ever does arise where we have to actually live through that "I wonder" question, our perception of such a scenario changes in a whole new way. From being an interesting notion --maybe even an adventurous experience for some-- it becomes completely unbearable and unacceptable.
Not so coincidentally, I had to experience one of those scenarios myself not so long ago. Although I cannot claim to have allowed my mind to ever concoct an adventure-laden experience mimicking such a scenario, I can say that I had thought about what most people would feel like in such a situation --including myself. It was one of those natural thoughts that cross the minds of a number of people in this day and age. It was the thought of "life without a cell phone".
A wonderful Professor of mine, had a lot to say about the deleterious effects of the cell phone --and rightfully so. He always asked us if we ever thought of how wonderful life would be without cell phones. To the average person such a statement may seem incongruous; perhaps the speaker misspoke, or the typist made a typo. But, there is no mistake about what he said. It is the fast pace acceleration of technology and our ever-growing dependence on it that makes it difficult for us to imagine what life may or may not be like without our ever-advancing gadgetry.
For me to claim that cell phones are a total waste, would be tantamount to being oblivious to, maybe even biased against, the number of benefits that they have brought. I can, however, claim that along with that "good" has come a significant amount of "distraction from good". I make that claim based on a recent experience. So, before this turns out to be one of those "technology: is it good or bad" essays, let me give you a glimpse of my experience.
I had just landed on an international airport after a 5 hour flight (approximately) and was garbed in the traditional 'Umrah (lesser pilgrimage) garment. After waiting in a moderately long line, I cleared immigrations, got to the luggage claims area, cleared customs, and was making my way out into the mass of people who are waiting behind a railing for their visitors every time I land at this airport. Like a few other airports where people are waiting ever-so anxiously for their visitors, many of whom only visit for short periods of time after immeasurable hiatuses, the crowd of beaming faces almost reaching over the railing and immense flood of lights really give the visitor a pseudo-delirium. Naturally, as I entered that area through the automatic sliding doors, I experienced just that. Normally, I can remain in that state and strain hard to try to identify my family members or just wait for them to snap me out of it. This time, however, inadvertently I was on my own.
Not so coincidentally, I had to experience one of those scenarios myself not so long ago. Although I cannot claim to have allowed my mind to ever concoct an adventure-laden experience mimicking such a scenario, I can say that I had thought about what most people would feel like in such a situation --including myself. It was one of those natural thoughts that cross the minds of a number of people in this day and age. It was the thought of "life without a cell phone".
A wonderful Professor of mine, had a lot to say about the deleterious effects of the cell phone --and rightfully so. He always asked us if we ever thought of how wonderful life would be without cell phones. To the average person such a statement may seem incongruous; perhaps the speaker misspoke, or the typist made a typo. But, there is no mistake about what he said. It is the fast pace acceleration of technology and our ever-growing dependence on it that makes it difficult for us to imagine what life may or may not be like without our ever-advancing gadgetry.
For me to claim that cell phones are a total waste, would be tantamount to being oblivious to, maybe even biased against, the number of benefits that they have brought. I can, however, claim that along with that "good" has come a significant amount of "distraction from good". I make that claim based on a recent experience. So, before this turns out to be one of those "technology: is it good or bad" essays, let me give you a glimpse of my experience.
I had just landed on an international airport after a 5 hour flight (approximately) and was garbed in the traditional 'Umrah (lesser pilgrimage) garment. After waiting in a moderately long line, I cleared immigrations, got to the luggage claims area, cleared customs, and was making my way out into the mass of people who are waiting behind a railing for their visitors every time I land at this airport. Like a few other airports where people are waiting ever-so anxiously for their visitors, many of whom only visit for short periods of time after immeasurable hiatuses, the crowd of beaming faces almost reaching over the railing and immense flood of lights really give the visitor a pseudo-delirium. Naturally, as I entered that area through the automatic sliding doors, I experienced just that. Normally, I can remain in that state and strain hard to try to identify my family members or just wait for them to snap me out of it. This time, however, inadvertently I was on my own.
It had seemed like that at any moment one of my brothers might call out my name and frantically wave at me or that one of them might appear almost out of no where and grab the luggage cart from me. But that wasn't to be. I snapped out of that state myself; I decided to go on around the back of the waiting crowd to see if by chance my brothers and father might have been forced by circumstance to stand in the back. That was not to be, either.
Before anyone misconstrues this to be a rant against the absence of my family from the "waiting crowd," let me make it abundantly clear that, contrary to the teachings of the "Establisher of foundations" in this part of the world, nothing works in the way that it should. As a result, a flight that is to land at a given time will most likely land much later and then the passport control and customs lines may be so long and improperly coordinated that the "waiting crowd" would just end up wasting it's entire enthusiasm for the visitor(s) in the anguish of the wait. Sensibly, then, many "waiting crowd" people pre-estimate all this into the stated arrival time and try to make it to the airport in good time before.
Unfortunately for the "waiting crowd" and for the visitor(s), there is an odd occasion when the flight lands ahead of schedule. At these times both the "waiting crowd" and the visitor are at a loss even though they should be excited to see one another earlier than they anticipated.
I was one of those odd, early-arriving visitors, and my family had decided to be one of those normal calculated time-arriving "waiting crowd" members. I circled around the "waiting crowd" and tried to push through them into the thick of the crowd in the hopes of locating them, but they were no where to be seen.
Although I must have been only searching around for them for a few minutes, it seemed like ages. I kept angrily thinking to myself, "why didn't I get a sim card for a cell phone provided in this country?" All I could vent out to myself I did. "Why do we have to be so disorganized? Why couldn't I have thought to get a sim card earlier or why didn't I activate roaming on my own sim card? " Then as if it could do me any benefit in the current situation, I thought, "Next time I should not put myself in such a vex."
Then it dawned on me, "why not just ask someone for their cell phone?" In pursuit of that epiphany, I approached a person and hesitantly asked him for his cell phone it whatever little of the local language I knew. Strangely, his response was a blunt "No". I decided to persist; I approached person # 2. Le voila! The person was from the country I had arrived from. He was more than happy to lend me his phone. I connected the call to my father and....
Long story short, I was delivered home in one piece, al-hamdulillaah (all praise, thanks, and glory belong to Allah).
The cell phone was of great benefit and I really felt the need, not want, for it. I tired finding "public pay phones" or "PCOs" but there were none at that airport, as far as I could see. Maybe next time I can look harder.
Now, what about the significant "distraction from good"? That will, in-shaa-Allah, come in Part 2...
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