"Social" : A Changing Word

I would describe myself as a social person. I love to talk, I love to be with my friends, I love to text and be in contact. Yes, I regularly check and communicate through Facebook. I text, e-mail, and Skype with long distance friends. I have become a super speedy typist, and my thumbs have trained themselves to work at great speeds on my phone’s keyboard. I would definitely call myself connected.

But, is that really being social?

We call all of this socializing: The Social Media.
Years ago, being social would be measured by how outgoing someone is, or how funny or friendly they are in person. These are intangible qualities that can not be expressed over the mediums of today’s technology. Yet, many would still consider someone who is extremely immersed in technology and depends on it as means for communication “social.” I would disagree.

Tonight, some of my friends and I had a little dinner party. We had potluck dinner, ate great food any enjoyed each other’s company. But, I could not help but notice how everyone there checked their phone at least once. Why? By having this little get together, we told ourselves that we were being fun and social. But if we can not bear having a nice social night without connecting to our “social media” devices, I would argue that one is not social in the slightest.

Why is it that we value the amount of different ways we can contact one person? Are we losing the true meaning of being “social?”