Jun 21, 2023 3 min read

I saw a news story the other day that said Gen-Z’ers are buying old-school flip phones and either ditching their new age smartphones or leaving them at home when they go out on the town. Some of the young folks interviewed for the story said they realized they were spending too much of their lives on their smartphone and that constantly worrying about social media posts or texts from ex-love interests was negatively affecting their mental health.

While my first reaction to this story was a smile and giggle, I wholeheartedly applaud their choices and the realization that living your life online or on social media rather than being in the moment is neither fun nor good for you. What made me laugh at this story was that their conclusion is something that’s been obvious to those of us who are older than Gen Z for quite some time. But as is so often the case when we’re young, we don’t want to listen to anyone older telling us what to do or how to think, right?

That being said, it’s so easy to become attached to our phones. The other night, my husband and I were on our way to dinner when I suddenly gasped. “Wait, where’s my phone?” I exclaimed. “I think you left it on the porch,” he replied. For a split second, I panicked. What would I do without my phone? Then he asked if I really needed it for any reason. I quickly realized that I did not need my phone at all. He had his phone with him in case we broke down or got abducted by aliens or some other sort of emergency, so I had no reason at all to have to use or carry mine. I’ll admit that for the first few minutes of the car ride, it bothered me a little bit to be without my phone. As time went on, I totally relaxed. By the end of the evening, I forgot that I didn’t have my phone with me and didn’t miss it one iota.

This made me laugh thinking what it was like back when we didn’t have cellphones. Then I remembered my flip phone – I really did like it, and the flip cover kept you from accidentally dialing someone. After my first flip phone, I got a slick newer version with a keyboard that slid out so you could type to text. I guess that was the precursor to the Blackberry.

Who knows if this return to flip phones will last or whether it’s just another passing fad. I find it hard to believe the public will turn away from social media or taking selfies altogether. What I do know is that it feels good to put down your phone once in a while, or better yet – leave it at home altogether.

Kristin Emery can be reached at kristinemery1@yahoo.com.