What in the World?

What in the world is happening? What is happening to our planet, basic decency, common courtesy and core human values?

While the pandemic seemed to have slowed everything down, the pace has certainly picked up since then. People are more divided than ever on all sorts of topics and respectfully disagreeing seems to be a thing of the past for most. Not to mention inflation that has severely hit the vulnerable community, from housing issues to the rising cost of food.

Spoiler alert: I’m Generation X. So, my point of view may or may not be your cup of tea. But aside from opinions, one cannot deny everything that has been happening in the past decade. I can already hear some of you saying, “It’s called evolution!” Sure. Evolution. But at what cost?

There is the good old financial cost, which has gotten to be rather high in recent years, not only in terms of prices but in obsolete objects that constantly need to be replaced or upgraded. Gone are the days when one could purchase an appliance that would last a good 30 to 40 years. I don’t remember my parents ever changing their appliances. Maybe once, after my parents had been married for well over 40 years.

I have lived in the same house now for 13 years, and I have already changed my washer, dryer, dishwasher and stove. I’m expecting our fridge to pack it in any day now (please don’t!). We start getting nervous when appliances near their 12th year anniversary. Fixing them would be wonderful, if only that were possible. In most cases, it proves an impossible task, or so expensive that purchasing a new appliance is cheaper. I did pay to have my dryer fixed once; it lasted a good four months more. In the end, I still had to purchase a new one. I don’t even want to think about what all these obsolete objects do to our planet. The old saying “Money makes the world go round” should now be “Money makes the world go dark.”

I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but money seems to be the source of all evil. Greed has really infiltrated our lives, hasn’t it?

Now, let’s talk about phones. Back in the day, most homes only had one land line, two if you were lucky. One phone for an entire family, believe it or not. It didn’t come without its occasional frustrations, such as having to wait your turn while your sister spoke to her boyfriend for hours. Or dial a number several times because the line was always busy. Yet somehow, we managed and went on our merry way. We also learned to wait our turn.

Then cell phones were introduced circa the seventies but only became popular years later. What a novelty they were! And how convenient. Little did we know.

The day smart phones were introduced, the world changed. The Internet was already creeping its way into our values and lifestyles, but the arrival of smart phones and social media just brought the toxicity to a whole other level. Of course, I’m exaggerating. But am I, really? One cannot argue the fact that, while technology has done absolute wonders (especially in the medical field), it has also been the downfall of humanity as we once knew it.

We’ve all seen ads and memes about people being victims of their cell phones. Families sitting at the same table without saying a word to one another, all of them busy looking at their phone. Dad is checking his latest emails or keeping up with the stock market, mom is adding something to her to-do list or checking out her friends’ latest Facebook and Instagram posts, the son is playing a game, and the daughter is taking a picture of her meal and posting it with a hashtag “#OMG My mom is like the best cook!” You get the gist.

In fact, I even heard someone on the radio yesterday, talking about exactly that. He had been on a beach vacation and was astounded by watching a couple with their children. Kids were in the stroller with their iPads, while mom and dad were on their respective iPhones. On vacation. On the beach. Sandcastles anyone? Or do we not do that anymore? Have we completely lost the ability to connect with one another, take in our surroundings, enjoy the moment, and stop and smell the damn flowers?

That is just one aspect. I don’t have to list them all because you know what cell phones are being used for. Some things are good, quite good in fact, and some are bad, even despicable. I love my iPhone. It is a tool I have come to rely on (thank you Google Maps). However, although I once knew all of my friends’ phone numbers by heart, I can now barely remember my husband’s. I do believe that remembering all those phone numbers was a good exercise for my brain. I take far too many pictures of my pets (and no, I don’t post them all on social media, which I now try to stay away from as much as possible), but I appreciate not having to lug my camera around when I travel. My iPhone camera usually does the trick.

My point is, while useful and sometimes necessary, technology (used here as a synonym for evolution) has hindered basic human values. That cannot be denied, regardless of how you feel about technology. The evidence is all around us. It is in classrooms, in restaurants and on the street. One cannot overlook the fact that with smart phones (and I’ll say it louder for the people in the back, social media), humanity and decency have taken quite a toll.

I do miss simpler times when people cared about working hard and making an honest living: raising their children to become good citizens and decent human beings (as opposed to being self-centred and entitled); helping their neighbour; speaking to one another and disagreeing respectfully. Of course, and thankfully, these people still do exist – otherwise we’d all be doomed. Still, I can’t help but wonder: whatever happened to good manners and basic kindness?

Violence is at an all-time high, even spilling into our once-so-pacific province. Whether it is violence against women, domestic violence and abuse, aggressive customers, vulgarity, theft, road rage, hate speech or crimes, the world seems to have gone completely mad.

Yet, notice how people pull together during a catastrophe. Why does it take such brutal events to bring people together? Sadly, wars still divide, people take sides as opposed to being on the same side of peace and humanity. All loss of life is tragic, period.

I will end this article with a positive anecdote.

Last summer, I got caught up in the passport crisis completely by my own fault. Long story short, I had forgotten that my daughter’s passport was valid for five years instead of ten, like my own. I checked the date on my passport . . . all good. Never bothered to check my daughter’s passport because they had been issued at the same time (my brain seriously failed me).

As I was registering our flight on the morning of our departure and opened my daughter’s passport, my heart sank. Her passport was expired. I never cry, but that morning I broke down. There was no way out of this. I had just ruined my daughter’s long-awaited summer vacation.

I ended up at the Passport office in Laval, along with 600 other people already in line. All I could do was wait and cry. Then something amazing happened. The people around me, all from different ethnic backgrounds, rallied and tried to console me. Absolute strangers tried to comfort me. Of course, their kindness made me cry even more. I spent all day waiting in line, with no hope for any result. Good Samaritans would even go to McDonald’s or Tim Hortons and distribute coffee and iced tea to the people waiting in line. That day, I met several angels. A woman of Middle Eastern origins and her baby had a soothing effect on me. She was so poised, calm and kind. Her baby girl never cried once, only played and smiled in her stroller. I was in awe of them both. I saw strangers pull together, help each other, keep one another’s place in line and watch over their personal belongings.

My daughter took my place at the end of the day as I had to drive my husband to the airport and “my new friends” made sure she was taken care of. By then, the lovely lady had been replaced by her husband, who was just as lovely as she was. What a beautiful couple they were, and their children were so well-mannered.

When I came back, clouds were rolling in, the wind was picking up and the rain would soon be pouring down. Camping out would not be fun. I told my daughter to go home, and I would stay the night. She refused to leave me. So, the lady’s husband (I hate that I never asked for their names. I normally would have but I was in a state of shock that day, somewhat dazed and desperate) said to me, “Go home with your daughter and get a good night’s sleep. I will keep your place in line.” I was so deeply touched by his kindness that I almost broke down again.

This little event restored my faith in humanity and made me want to be a better person too. So, maybe there is hope after all.

As for the passport, we ended up going to Gatineau, where there were only four people in line. We camped out all night, got our passport the next day and joined my husband in France, having lost only two days. A happy ending after all, and I often think of the lovely people I met in line. I hope they got their passports too.