Death to Tik Tok

‘SIGH.’ I looked up at the wall. The digital clock illuminated 11:10pm, piercing through the dark room. As usual, my thumb is dancing with the screen of my iPhone. The speakers are blasting short videos of friends performing stunts, cats wearing crazy outfits, a plus-sized influencer showing the latest fashion, a mom and her daughter creating spoofs, King James and his family dancing, influencers promoting some brand partner, creative life hacks, Khabby. Lame’s famed facial expression and the videos are endless. I double-tap the most entertaining videos as my thumb continues to dance with the screen. ‘YAWN.’ My eyes peered at the clock once more. The clock shows 1:30am. 2:20mins managed to pass by without warning. Instantly my eyes close, and the phone still echoes videos while sitting in my hand.

…I slowly open my eyes. Morning makes its statement as the sky is colored blue. ‘YAWN.’ This yawn was not a tired expression but rather an agitation knowing morning woes await me. A checklist of brushing my teeth, combing my hair, taking a shower, getting dressed, and so forth. The clock shows 6:45am. Before I start the day, I pick up my phone - raise it to my face for facial recognition, and smile as the app picks up exactly where I left off. TIK TOK. This was life. Day in and day out. Scrolling, double-tapping, memes, and 20-second videos. This is a new era as we know it. Barely any human interaction. The social interaction was with my phone. It was my comfort. My lifeline. It allowed me to laugh, cry, and drown myself in entertainment while forgetting about life.

But this could not be life.

Whatever happened to human interaction? Phone calls between two human beings, not voice notes and texts. Conversations with friends. Whatever happened to us? Humans?
Let us get back to the basics. Social interaction. Dinner with friends, game nights with family, outings with loved ones, phone calls to simply say ‘Hello, I was just thinking about you,’ trips to the outback ( okay, maybe not that, unless you want to, lol). But life is beautiful beyond the phone, the scrolling, and social media. It’s okay to be Social again post-pandemic. DEATH to TIK TOK!

Start with “Hi friend, how are you?”
... it goes a long way.