U is for Unplugged

With many thanks to my Facebook friend, Megan Slattery who inspired this story this morning with her Facebook post about her wonderment at seeing a young couple walking along enjoying the spring day without being buried in their phones or having ear buds hanging out of their ears.


Shauna hurried along, phone in hand, texting with her friend, Casey. She was late for French class once again. Her eyes never once left her phone as she  rushed across the pedestrian bridge. Suddenly she collided with someone and her phone flew out of her hand. She shrieked as she saw it go hurtling over the bridge and heard a splash.

“Noooooooo!” she cried.
.
She turned and focused on the dazed girl sprawled on the ground next to her.

“Are you okay?” Shauna asked, helping the girl to her feet.

“I lost my phone!” the girl wailed.

“Me, too,” Shauna said, trembling in panic. Both of them looked over the edge of the bridge to the murky depths of the river below.

“This sucks,” the girl said and started to cry.

“Oh, come on now,” Shauna said to reassure her. “It’s not the end of the world. A phone can be replaced.”

“My life was in that phone,” the girl said between loud sobs.

“Oh, me, too,” Shauna agreed. “Sad that we’re so dependent on them.” The girl nodded and picked up her knapsack.

“Let’s take a walk and calm down. I missed French class again. Madame Laplante will be angry, but what else is new?” Shauna said trying to sound more positive than she felt. “What’s your name? I’m Shauna.”

“Candace,” the girl said, wiping away her tears. “Hey, I have Madame Laplante, too. You must be in my class. I never noticed you before.”

“I didn’t notice you either. Guess we were buried in our phones,” Shauna said and the two girls laughed.

They walked along the forest path watching the ducks and swans floating in the water nearby. Snowdrops and daffodils peeked out of the new grass.

“I never knew the river had swans and ducks,” Candace said.

“Neither did I,” Shauna admitted. “And listen to the birds chirping in the trees. What a racket!” They watched the antics of the squirrels tearing through the trees chasing each other.

They spied a cantine when they came out of the forest and bought some soft ice cream. Sitting on a park bench, they ate their cones.

“That guy in the cantine is pretty cute, eh?” Shauna observed. “I never noticed him before.”

“He is a hunk, for sure,” Candace said. “He said his name is Brock.”

“What a great day!” Shauna said, stretching out her bare legs.

“I agree,” said Candace. “So what should we do about our phones?”

“Our phones can wait. Let’s enjoy being unplugged for a change,” Shauna said and both girls leaned back and closed their eyes, enjoying the warm sunshine and the sounds of spring all around them. 


I am participating in the A to Z Challenge writing a blog post for every day in April, except Sundays. http://www.a-to-zchallenge.com/

Here are my previous posts for the challenge:

A is for Andante or Allegro, which one are you?

B is for Beauty of Birds
C is forMy Favourite Words begin with C
D is for It's Still a Delightful Day!
E is for Elusive Eloise
F is for Forgive and Forget
G is for Guilt
H is for Holiday in your Head
I is for Introverts can have Impact and Influence
J is for Jack and Jill
K is for Katie the Klutz 
L is for Lollygagging
M is for Magical Moments
N is for Never Again 

O is for Object 
P is for Picture Perfect 
Q is for Q is a Quirky Letter 
R is for Romance 
S is for Squirrel 
T is for Thoughts


Comments

  1. This is a lovely way to showcase a fictionalised version of a real life event. And so true. We do need to unplug and see the world with our own eyes. That seems to have gone 'out of fashion' altogether!

    A Uruguayan called Jose

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  2. A timely story with a good message, Cathy. Personally, I don't understand this obsession with smartphones. How can a person's 'whole life' be contained within? (This must be a generational issue. LOL) I love the way you illustrate how the girls became reacquainted with the real world.

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  3. Hahaha!
    Great minds at work again, Cathy!
    I also wrote on getting unplugged today! :D
    Happy AtoZing!
    Chicky @ www.mysteriouskaddu.com

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