From Pony Express to Pixels

In a time when we can travel almost anywhere at the push of a button—by plane, car, train, or even virtually—we’re reminded of a not-so-distant past. Before the telephone, there was the Pony Express. A handwritten letter held immeasurable value, and communication was a slow dance with the unknown. You sent a message, hoping it would reach its destination, but never truly knowing if it did.

That wonder has all but vanished.

Today, we’ve surpassed radios and records, even CDs. With one click, we can instantly hear any song, video chat across the globe, and explore distant cities through a screen. We’ve created a world of immediate gratification—but at what cost?

Progress or Dependence?

Technology evolves daily. New versions of TVs, smartphones, laptops, and smart devices flood the market at a dizzying pace. We’re constantly plugged in, exposed, and consuming. Yet no one is quite sure of the long-term effects this has on our health, our minds, or our communities.

Even cigarettes come with a warning label. Where’s the one for screen time?

Technology is a tool, not a crutch. But it’s becoming exactly that. The widespread dependence on devices means individuals are outsourcing their awareness, creativity, and autonomy. When even the homeless are standing in line—not for food or clothing—but for free phones, we must ask: what are we prioritizing as a society?

The Disappearing Human Connection

We are losing the art of eye contact, the patience for problem-solving, the grace of sitting with discomfort. Children, praised for using FaceTime before they’ve formed full sentences, are growing up in a world where imagination is being outsourced to screens.

Movies, games, and digital distractions have become pacifiers. And adults aren’t immune. We scroll through meals, stare at our phones as we walk, and find silence nearly unbearable.

This dependency doesn’t just affect etiquette—it impacts brain development, emotional regulation, and self-identity, especially in children.

Virtual Reality = Real Disconnection

This increasing detachment from ourselves is a dangerous paradox: a false sense of connection masking a deeper disconnection. A digital thread pretending to be a lifeline. We are connected more than ever—and more alone than ever.

In my Master’s Thesis, I explored how art and imagination—not from external entertainment, but from within—are vital to developing the Authentic Self. This is especially critical during childhood. But expressive, creative education is being edged out of schools and homes in favor of passive consumption.

We are feeding our children endless content—but not nurturing their inner world.

Back to the Self

When we fail to foster imagination and emotional expression, we risk raising a generation that lacks the tools to self-regulate, self-reflect, and self-actualize. These are the seeds of developmental delays, emotional struggles, and identity confusion.

It’s time to stop asking only what technology can do for us—and begin asking what it’s doing to us.

We must become more intentional about what we feed our minds and the minds of our children. Because in the end, the symptoms we see in our society—anxiety, distraction, emotional numbness—are not isolated problems. They are responses to a much deeper disconnection from ourselves, each other, and the natural world.

So, Chicken or the Egg?

Is technology shaping us, or are we shaping technology? Perhaps the answer is both.

But the better question might be: Can we remember who we were before the screen?

The solution may lie not in turning away from progress, but in returning to presence.