For the Love of Drudgery!

I cancelled my cel phone bill and the cancellation kicked in today. At first I was worried I would go through withdrawal, and I am sure there will be times where I wish my phone still worked, but so far I feel liberated. I just called a real person to make plans with them, for the first time in a very long time. As I spoke, leaving a message on their machine, I realized I was feeling relieved. Even though I was talking to a machine.

Turns out, human connections are healthy, for more than one reason. We need each other, as much as we need to sleep or breathe or eat. When we don't speak to each other, we create walls. Human connections can be made in lots of ways, and I am certain that hearing each other's voices is one of them. So is touch. Consider the words of Alan Muskat, from his article, No Taste Like Home:

Struggling to keep up with the March of Progress, we also leave each other behind. We've invented machines to do work that our mind considers tedious, like processing wild food, weaving, and washing clothes. We call it drudgery, and women fought hard to be liberated from it. But what makes drudgery dull is isolation. This kind of work is meant to be shared, and it's just the sort of mindless activity people can do while hanging out, catching up, and really getting to know each other. I believe the loss of drudgery has unwoven the fabric of society. From TV to computers, our interactions with the world and with each other have become mediated; that's why it's called "media." We've gone from face look to Facebook. What we've supposedly gained in time — again, only to spend it working for The Man — we've lost in community. Divide and be conquered.

I'm excited about taking steps toward living a life where I can connect with people in a more real way. And I'm glad that I have an excuse to call instead of texting. Or to stop by someone's house without calling first: if I don't have a cel phone and I'm just happening by, how would I be able to call ahead? Spontaneous connections are important, I feel. 

So are physical connections. I recently read about how human touch is not only a stress-reliever, but in fact, it has healing power. As soon as you think about this, you think, of course! It makes sense. There is a reason my sister says her massage therapist is as much a therapist as she is a massage therapist. And it's probably not just about the fact that she is easy to talk to. The people who we feel comfortable touching are the people who we feel comfortable being ourselves with. 

I knew Charlotte Diamond had the right idea!

Now, everyone go hug someone they love.