Keh Dete

 

Keh Dete  

(Could have told)

 

Technology is a useful servant but a dangerous master.  Christian Lous Lange

 

Spent my teens living with my eldest brother, then settled at Patiala and working with Chief Architect Punjab: married in a traditional family there: was a frequent visitor to his in-laws so  was I to his in-laws. The family-head of my father’s Sambandhi brother’s father-in-law was a highly learned freelance Purohit, a very serious and a sincere person who spoke much less: who would normally return home in the evening after day’s hard work. At that time sharp, anyone at home would come out, carry away the load from the carrier of his bicycle, park appropriately his bike cycle, bring a glass of water, some will prepare tea, coffee was not the order of the day, then some rest and change, if it were time of lunch/ evening tea or dinner would be served, everybody would talk in low tone no question of quarrel or fight, his presence was felt in every nook and corner of the home, girls specially the daughters-in-law would speak in a tone that is audible to the next person alone, everybody busy doing his job or leisure.  This just an example, had seen many such families where elders were respected like this: I call it due honour, regard and decorum.

 

Now the time has taken a turn for Mobile phone, internet, AI, Social Media, WhatsApp, FaceBook, Games, Online and above all, view whatever you like in the secrecy of your palms even the closest can’t see what you are doing: great source of posing being engaged keep the site open it works for you. Ten persons in room may be of nuclear families off shoots of same ancestors, would be in a pin-drop silence mode and mood too: nobody is bothered: everybody is engrossed mostly uselessly; they are busy even on the toilet seat and sometime forget the purpose for what they had gone and the touch the same mobile every time even while eating food, they call it modern; my mind fails me to give it a name, certainly it is sans human interaction forget respect and presence of elders their needs and manners too. Decorum is a forgotten word even in world of employment it is losing place quickly to modern concept of name even the first name. It is of Albert Einstein quoting, “I fear the day that technology will surpass our human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots.” Do not know whether the human society has reached there; certainly it is on its way may be there or else derogatory, without human emotions and feelings.

 

Interruptions to such practitioners, cause irritations, tension, anxiety, stress sometimes depression weaken relations and so many other things like Mouse “Chuha” Click strengthens the concept of everything happening in a “blink” against the principle of nature – everything comes with the season and takes time; if a senior reminds response is: pahle “Keh Dete”: no presumption, assumption, understanding or common sense, everything has to be told as clearly as black and white as computer oozes out on the black screen, on click of “Chuha”. Common sense is the greatest sufferer, everybody is for himself. Earth is seeing more men than humans.

 

Is it always that rubbish, certainly not, Work From Home, Study online, Employment it has generated are blessings of the modern system of fast communications and information technology.

 

Reaching our lowest points in life can sometimes teach us lessons that we might not have learned otherwise. For every dark cloud there is a silver lining.

C Tang

 

Technology is just a tool. In terms of getting the  kids working together and motivating them, the teacher is the most important.  Bill Gates