Have you ever been eating out with your friends and everyone is glued to their phones? Growing up in my family we weren’t allowed to have our phones at the table. Because of that, it was a foreign concept to be allowed to use my phone at lunch. Meal times are for bonding and enjoying other people’s company. It’s a time to catch up and see how everyone’s day is going, not sit around on your phone. 

At school, lunch is downtime where students can use that time however they like, but why waste it using your phone when you can talk to your friends? It can be argued that if you don’t have lunch with your friends, texting them during your lunch period is the next best thing.

However, there is a difference between messaging people who aren’t sitting right next to you. There is no harm in talking, so why do we quickly resort to playing on our phones when we are bored, when we could have a conversation with someone that might turn into a friendship? 

It can be hard to stay in the moment especially when you have a busy day. Sometimes a good lighthearted conversation is what your brain needs to mentally be ready to handle more. It’s a good distraction that isn’t fueled by blue light. 

In fact, dinner can also be a time to unwind for some people. While for others it’s just eating food and going onto the next thing. In my family, having a no phone rule at the table means that we have to talk about our days otherwise, it’s a very quiet dinner. 

It’s one of my favorite times of the day because my whole family exchanges their days and it’s a special time to bond over delicious food. All of us one by one say how our day was, whether it was good or bad. Nobody is forced to share if they don’t want to, and some nights it’s exchanging stories from the day. 

So the next time you go to lunch, or dinner try a tech-free meal and see how you like it. You just might feel more connected hearing about how your brother’s baseball practice went instead of beating your high score on “Block Blast.”