Tag: technology

daily prompt

The Extinction of Mail Service

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Scour the news for an entirely uninteresting story. Consider how it connects to your life. Write about that.


This is the latest news on Pure and Simple Channel, which nobody seems to care a whit about. This is likely because the term “mail service” is no longer in use in today’s world.

Here’s the news; There’s a widespread complaint about mail service across the globe. It claims: “Since the postman left, there hasn’t been an honest message.

Have you heard this piece of news?

Well, it’s just come to my attention that the news was just a saying—or perhaps a quote. FYI, in case you decide to look it up.

Anyway, isn’t that saying or quote so true and insightful?

How is the postman doing in your place?

Well… in mine, the postman shows up once a week, if not longer, and delivers mostly ads, bills, and donation bags. Worse still, it seems no one looks forward to seeing him anymore. Oh, the poor man and the mail posts have become old-fashioned on the road to extinction.

Now, what do you think we’ve been missing since the postman left?

Perhaps the design of the stamp, the scent of the paper, the genuine affections in the words, the smile hidden behind those brief greetings, the longing in between the lines, the long details, the casual sentences, and the unique signature at the end.

In other words— when the postman left, the letter lost its pure and simple message.



With hope and peace,

Nahla

Just writing

A Taxi Without a Driver!

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That would be so funny!

I’d love for eternity if I ever got into one. But even if you gave me a fortune—I wouldn’t.


Just magine getting into a car without a driver—yet everything works perfectly. You hold your breath for a few moments, wondering if you’re travelling to space?  The vehicle is luxurious, comfortable, and incrediably smooth. You can’t believe it’s already gliding down the road. Before you know it, you’ve arrived at your destination. You get off and walk away, wondering if it was just a dream.

Perhaps the driver’s seat wasn’t empty after all. Perhaps it wasn’t just air filling the space. Could there have been a driver wearing Harry Potter’s invisible cloak? May be, you thought for anything is possible nowadays, right?

Some people might see that as a great emerging tech idea for safety— a smoother, quicker kind of public service. Wow. They argue that this invention could reduce crime, accidents, and other unethical issues. But so far, many of these  revolutionary technologies have been causing more chaos, more moral, physical, and psychological problems like ever before.

Have you ever thought about how these utopian endeavours could affect our senility, our intelligence, our social and emotional abilities, our self-esteem, and our sense of existence. Are these qualities worth nothing?

There’re loads … millions … and more faults in human beings than one can imagine, but at least we are visible, we are real, and we exist in abundance.

Unemployment and homelessness are major problems everywhere—so why make things worse by cutting more jobs, more wages, and more lives?

And then, they talk about some imaginary heaven with high rate levels of stupidity, violence, and poverty.

Have a safe drive,

With hope and peace,

Nahla

daily prompt

The electronic mold

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Do you remember life before the internet?

A few years ago, I was visiting with my father-in-law as we were on our summer holiday back home to Egypt. He was in his late-sixties, and though he was suffering from some serious health problems, he was mentally and physically okay. One of his granddaughters had just left when we arrived.

As we were having some tea together, my father-in-law couldn’t hold his temper any longer. He huffed and puffed, and I put my tea cup back on the table, holding my breath. I didn’t know whether he was in pain or whether he was devastated by anything. I remained silent, praying my any one would join us in the living room. No one did. And, the poor man exploded.

‘She was on that junk machine for the whole day. Her fingers tapping and tapping all the time. Her eyes fixed on that trash. She didn’t hear, didn’t see but that … phone.’

I swallowed and thanked God mine was in my bag.

‘That’s what she always does every visit. It’s stuck in her hand. In the kitchen, at the dinning table, and even in the bathroom.’

When I burst out laughing, he smiled and his anger evaporated a bit.

‘Stupid generation.’ He added before changing to another topic.

I think this summarises how life has changed after the internet, or can we be more accurate and say after having it on our cell phones. A few years before this happening, my in-laws’ house was full of life and noise. People, young and old, were talking, playing, laughing, arguing, etc. But, after the interent has become widely used and accessible, life is mainly about being live, online. That why my father-in-law couldn’t quite fit into the new generation’s electronic mold.

With all the best wishes,

Nahla

daily prompt

A double-edged sword

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How has technology changed your job?

Truly, technology has made our life much easier, simpler and it’s saved much of our time. At work,  home,  shopping, communicating, travelling, reading,  writing,  the list of its benefits is indeed extensive. And, that’s the positive edge of the sword; the one that can heal and help.

On the other hand, technology has caused serious psychological and sociological issues; separation, lack of privacy, wasted time, immobility, lethargy, forgetfulness, triviality, conflicts, and more. The list of its disadvantages can go for ever. And, that’s the negative edge of the sword, the one that can be a poision and a killer.

Whatever your job is, and even if you are a student, this double-edged sword will always be your companion from now on. Yet, it is one of your possesssions. You park your car in the driveway, yet you have also two legs to walk. You have an assignment due within a couple of weeks and, with one click, AI could finish the job. But, you have also your brain, your own style, your own thoughts and feelings that can produce a genuinely unique piece of work.

We have been created to make use of things, not to be used by them. 

With all the best wishes,

Nahla