Nothing but a Metal Box
January 28, 2006 Leave a comment
When is the last time you receive a nice, hand-written letter from someone? When is the last time you receive a handmade card from a friend?
Dun you hate those sms greetings you received on the eve of a festive holiday? Technology has already provided us the ease to communicate, yet many choose to “mass-blast” a generic greeting for their friends and loved ones. Just how many repeated forwarded messages you receive this Chinese New Year? (I must say I really respect the originator of those creative and catchy sms…but when I have like 10-20 friends sending me that same sms… I got turn off.)
Where is the heart? Where is the “human-technology” that Nokia has been pushing years back? Technology provides us the ease of communication, certainly not the laze of interaction.
Can’t we afford a 1-minute call to say hi? Can’t we afford spending more time typing in personalized greetings and wishes for that special one that you wish to send? SMS is free, right?
Gone were those days when I look forward to open that letterbox at the foot of my block. Everyday, I would be peeking into the letterbox, looking for my own letters – from my penpals (USA, Finland, and Libya), and my overseas cousins (Pakistan, Australia, Canada, Egypt, UK) and endless love notes from my secondary suitors… (haaa…just kidding).
Since 12, I have been keeping all those letters in a box. I told my parents that one day, when I am old – like 60, I would take all these letters out and read them. I may be old and senile then; at least, I still have all these written memories to refresh my old, forgetful mind.
These days, I really dislike opening that letterbox. I told my wife that it is no longer a letterbox – literally. It is more like a bill box – there is basically nothing but bills and junk direct mailers.
I wonder if my child would know how to write a letter. Perhaps he will know how to type an email…but certainly, writing letters may be a thing of the past.. isolated and murdered by our own generation.
Good news for my old dad. His stamp collections may really worth a lot of money in 20 years to come. So are his phone-card collections.
12 years away from home - Singapore. Writing my stories here for my lovely mum & dad, friends and most importantly, for my wife & son back home. A self-confessed gadget freak, a spontaneous prankster on the outside and a warm loving heart inside. Enjoying a happy life with loving families, friends plus a dream job. Realising mum’s motto – “Exceed Yourself Every Day”. Always believing that “Simplicity is Beauty”.
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