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Maria DiGiorgio is a lifelong New Yorker, who currently resides in Commack, with her family. She is a devoted wife and mother, an educator and designer. Maria |
| For anyone who might recall the wildly popular advertising slogan of the 1980’s: “Where’s the beef?” I propose a newer, more suitable phrase, to address the chaos of today’s world: “Where’s the peace?” It seems like at every feasible location (from restaurants, to shopping malls, in airports and above city streets), there’s a giant screen television just waiting to bombard us with the world’s most sinister and disastrous events. Wherever I go, hoping to relax and unwind, conducting my personal affairs, or spending time with family and friends, I have found myself sitting under a flat-screen T.V., that by virtue of its very positioning, commands my attention. As such, I receive all the news of the day: good, bad and ugly, regardless of whether or not I wish to be informed, at those moments, in those settings. Gone are the days when graphic images were reserved for late night or serious news programs. Today, anything goes, and because people are habitually holding their phones, they are primed to film even the most horrific of scenes. Desensitization has never been higher! At my gym, no less than four big screens surround me, each with its own sad story to tell. If I do not get scared out of my wits by the news channels, then I can feel my blood boil, with the stupidity and insanity of the latest “reality” shows, depicting self-indulged, amoral human beings, collecting giant paychecks for letting “us” in on their “interesting” lives. Let me not forget to mention the myriad commercials for every known (and often unknown) ailment, which could befall anyone of us, at any given moment. It’s all I have to do to escape an anxiety attack, all in the name of health and wellness. It would appear there is a constant need to be shocked, over-stimulated and irritated. What of the pleasures of peace and quiet, of scintillating conversation, of simply taking in the world around us, without surround sound? Why is it necessary to always be “on”? Do we really need to focus on the latest sporting event, political forum or world disaster while we’re out and about, living our lives? Isn’t there something to be said for “unplugging” and reconnecting to the world and one another, without means of electronics? With the advent of today’s technology, it would appear superfluous to introduce even more, when people can access any and all information they desire, with the touch of a finger. I advocate for a return to things that reflect a simpler time: for responsibility, decency, and sensibility, as well as sensitivity. Restaurants should be for eating and conversing, gyms, for exercise, airports and city streets, for sights and sounds of the world around us, and no one should have to fear imagery that would be scarring to themselves or to their loved ones, haphazardly dropped in their field of vision. Less is so much more, and the peace we acquire, simply priceless! |
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20 lucky winners will win $500 each in prizes totaling $10,000. 