» j e ws

i n t he digita l a g e

A Return
To Simpler
Times

(Before Technology
Complicated Things)

I

’ve always had a tremendous apprecia-
tion for technology. I’m continuously
wowed by the innovations that have
revolutionized our lives, but I also fear
that technology is causing us to lose our
foundation with some of the most basic
human engagement. I’m a tech evangelist,
but I often think about where we, as a
society and as a Jewish community, must
draw the line.
Last month, we observed the High
Holidays and, as we do every year, we
heard the Hebrew word teshuvah used a
lot. Teshuvah is most commonly defined
as repentance, but it literally means
“return.” Perhaps it is time we return to
basics as a way of resetting for the Jewish
new year.
Many people praise technology but also
express yearning for the much simpler
times before technology dominated our
waking hours. Teshuvah can be a path
for us to embrace technology as well as a
chance to unplug and return to that sim-
pler time.
One way to return to pre-Digital Age
times is through the important art of
small talk. In a recent Wall Street Journal
article, Jennifer Breheny Wallace looked
at what we’re missing by no longer engag-
ing in small talk with one another. She
writes, “Anyone who passes regularly
through busy public spaces knows that one

casualty of our obsession with
I’ve heard friends tell me how
digital devices has been small
stressed they are because they
talk. With our eyes glued to our
“have to” watch an entire season of
smartphones, fewer of us engage
a television show because they don’t
anymore with people whom
want to accidentally hear spoilers
we don’t know well. But are we
that will ruin it for them.
missing something in this loss
Thanks to all this on-demand
of idle chitchat?”
television viewing, we’re read-
We probably are. A growing
ing less, going outside less and
Rabbi Jason
body of research suggests that
exercising less. When our faces
Miller
small talk has surprising bene-
aren’t planted on the screens of our
fits. In a study published in 2014
mobile devices, they’re busy watch-
in the Personality and Social Psychology
ing the bigger screens.
Bulletin, researchers found that daily inter-
In the new year, we should all pledge to
actions with casual acquaintances, like
go on a TV diet and take on a book regi-
chatting with your regular barista at the
men or join a book club. Take your book
coffee shop, can contribute to day-to-day
to the gym and read it on a stationary bike
well-being. Small talk also helps to build
or elliptical machine.
empathy and a sense of community. It is
We should go outside on a nice day
much harder to snap at someone if you
and sit on the porch consuming non-TV
just exchanged pleasantries.
content. Even if you choose to read on a
Another form of teshuvah — returning
Kindle or tablet instead of from a tradi-
to pre-tech time — is through literacy. The tional book, at least you’ll be performing
technology we have now to improve our
teshuvah — a return to literacy.
television and movie-watching experience
Another teshuvah is a return to discus-
is amazing. We can stream content on
sion at the dinner table. Too often, some-
our phones and tablets, binge watch our
one asks a question and one person at the
favorite TV shows and watch our favorite
dinner table quickly pulls out a phone and
movies on demand. However, as great as
consults with one of three modern sages:
these innovations are, they have made us
Siri, Wikipedia or Google. This has taken
couch potatoes. It has become almost a
all the fun and excitement out of our dis-
responsibility to consume all the content
cussions. Rather than having a friendly
we have at the ready.
debate, the internet abruptly ends that

possibility.
I’m amazed how quickly we can have
our questions answered thanks to the
power of the internet. However, I miss let-
ting everyone theorize the answer, even
if they’re wrong. We can always go to
the web later, but why not engage in the
discussion first? Let’s do teshuvah — and
return to the age of inquiry and opinion.
In the new year, let’s pledge not to run to
Google and Wikipedia so quickly … espe-
cially at the dinner table.
Teshuvah does not merely mean repen-
tance. It is a conscious effort to return
to basics. In the coming year, let’s pledge
to unplug at times. Taking our eyes off
our screens more will lead to increased
interaction with each other. Let’s pledge
to read more. It will give us a break from
the stress of trying to catch up on all our
streaming shows and downloaded mov-
ies. We should also engage in more dinner
table debates before running to Professor
Google for the answer.
May the new year be one of inspiration,
new challenges and perhaps most impor-
tant … a return to a simpler life!

*

Rabbi Jason Miller is a technology entrepreneur, edu-
cator and blogger. He is president of Access Computer
Technology in West Bloomfield. Follow him on Twitter
at @RabbiJason.

November 3 • 2016

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