Romancing My Phone

  •   Sun, Jul 05 2015
  •   By Anita Britto, Auckland

July 5, 2015

Romancing My Phone


Not hand-cuffed to my iPad, my laptop or my phone
Though pretty much enslaved by them, without them I just groan
iPhone in my handbag – I’m confident and calm
Armed with it I feel I’ve got the whole world in my palm


A hostage to my gizmos to whom my soul is sold
I text and tweet and Instagram and must say I’m controlled
By “I-Stuff” that I itch to click at any given time
Even when I’m writing tapestry of ‘phoney’ rhyme


A digiholic to the core, I try to stave off sleep
And check my Facebook updates till l I hear my laptop bleep
Stifle several yawns before I browse the net and rush
To harvest crops on Farmville while playing Candy Crush


Unlike my learned Grand Dad I’m just a swipe away
From checking out the distance from Shanghai to Santa Fe
In real time I’ll tell you what’s happening in Spain
Look up Jay Z’s lyrics or the price of Sugar Cane


All the same I must confess my Smart phone’s made me dumb
Without it I’ve no answer and I keep silent and mum
I cannot quote from Shakespeare or tell you why birds fly
I’m lost without dear Google - Distraught without Wi-Fi


I can’t access my suite of apps or post my latest pics
Keep up with Kardashians or surf for selfie sticks
I can’t find Grandma’s favourite psalm and try hard not to swear
Am truly at a loss for words and driven to despair


Like a muscle atrophied – my brain which is unused
Can’t crowdsource like my cell phone and soon it gets confused
Its thinking power diminished I’m dismally aware
That it cannot function better than a baby’s derriere


Unlike my Darling Grandmas whose lives were gadget-free
Who raised 8 kids without a sigh, I’m sure you will agree
Left to my devices, I’m anxious and distressed
Lost in a Data cesspool with which I am obsessed


And when I end up meeting folks who WhatsApp me each day
We “Zuckerverb” for some time and then don’t know what to say
A tragic paradox, I guess being upwardly mobile
We reach out for our phones once more and nonchalantly smile


Our tech-obsessed society has made us all belong
Much more to our cell phones and we just tag along
If Darwin was allowed a glimpse into our world he’d say
That you and me have “devolved” from the Human of his day


We’re more like ‘Phono Sapiens’ who need to stay unplugged
From Internet and 4 G cause we act like we our drugged
Like Zombies we keep staring all day long into our palm
We need to learn to disconnect or else we’ll do more harm


With apps to mend a broken heart or tell you how to kiss
Something in the ‘Planet of the Phones’ has gone amiss
Apps for Appaholics too loaded with “Detalks”
To help us stay away from what I call ‘Pandora’s box’


The other day my soul mate of some twenty years and four
Caught me romancing my phone and noticed my heart soar
Every time “i-touched” my phone he saw me blush and smile
And wondered if I’d rather walked the cell phone down the aisle


I looked at him with disbelief and said he ought to know
I loved him more than Marilyn loved Joe DiMaggio
I launched into a tirade while I changed my profile pic
In Cyberland I told him Multi-tasking was the trick


Invading every realm of space – board room to the bed
Reclusive lonely folks are what Technology has bred
A graveyard lined with corpses – so self-absorbed and smug
Unhinged with Online Overdose – Let’s Live Life and unplug


In our nomophobic world, we don’t have time to stare
Like William Henry Davies and find beauty everywhere
It’s time to chill out with our friends and look up at the sky
Hear the rustle of the breeze and watch the butterfly.

 

Anita Britto Archives:

 

 

 
By Anita Britto, Auckland
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Comment on this article

  • Anita sequeira, Bendur - Mangalore-Bangalore

    Wed, Jul 08 2015

    Brilliant Anita, your articles are excellent. Keep writing. God bless you always. Fond love,
    Your cousins , Urban, Anita and Amanda

  • Jyoti Raj, Auckland

    Tue, Jul 07 2015

    This is the autobiography of the new age Man/Woman. The small joys in life have been trashed by the advent of a gadget. Well written Anita...keep going. Looking fwd to more.

  • R.Bhandarkar, Mangaluru

    Mon, Jul 06 2015

    MOBILE COMES
    Phone Instrument Goes......
    Camera Goes....
    Radio Goes......
    Calculator Goes....
    Computer Goes......
    Watch Goes.......
    Torch Goes.....
    Calendar Goes....
    Tape Recorder Goes.....
    1 Comes and So many Goes!!!!
    Love...Romance...Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
    Emotions...Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm
    Serious points to Ponder....!
    Anita Madam- If the fairer sex start to ....
    Romance the Phone
    We Will be left Alone
    With No Option but to
    'Romancing The Stone'!

  • Dr.Anand and Geeta N Pereira, Sakleshpur/Mangalore

    Mon, Jul 06 2015

    Absolutely Brilliant.Would request you to write one inspiring the young minds on nature conservation.

  • margarita saldanha, India/ London

    Mon, Jul 06 2015

    Attagirl, describes I Pad users obsessions to a T.
    The I Pad has taken control of our lives, we no longer store facts in our brains, as all the information is at our finger tips.
    As always your poem says it all.
    Margarita

  • Don D'Souza, Mangalore/Nasik

    Sun, Jul 05 2015

    Great one. You're super brilliant, Anita.

  • Joe Britto, Nakre/Bangalore

    Sun, Jul 05 2015

    Nice one Anita!
    Thanks indeed.

    Our gadgets have truly taken possession of us and it's time only for Google, Apple and Microsoft.
    Even kids are now literally born with ready made Tablets and there is no going back to the Slate and Pencil.


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