More Than An iPhone

Do you love your iPhone? Is it attached to your hip? Or perhaps, your shoe (for aesthetic reasons, please do not try at home)? For most of us, the answer is yes. That includes me.

You often hear the typical question of what your most “prized possession”  is. As I was pondering what I would grab from my burning house, my iPhone buzzed in my pocket almost like a little reminder, “Hey, remember me? The $700 palm-sized computer in your back pocket? Yeah, I thought so.” So naturally, I came to the conclusion that the single, most valuable object I own is, indeed, my Apple iPhone 5.

Now, as someone who resents the stigma that all teenagers cling to their devices, I was a little disappointed in the truth behind my realization. My phone? Not my favorite book? My paintbrushes? Not even the ring my boyfriend gave me? Perhaps I was even a little bit ashamed. But I realized that Apple is a billion dollar company for a reason. The reason is not that their customers are all teenagers, in fact, I know of several adults that seem more attached to their phones than their kids. If all the grandmas out there are learning how to use touch screen, there must be a legitimate reason why it's so popular.

There's the obvious factor of using the iPhone to get connected. To call and wish someone a happy birthday, to schedule a movie date with your sister, or to tell the world what you ate for lunch (not so much the last one). But that's not why I'm running back into a burning building for my phone, no, I'm going back for much more than an iPhone.

Despite what all ten year old kids seem to think, the iPhone is not just for keeping someone occupied, it's more than that. I don't just have Twitter and Temple Run 2 on my phone, I have memories, people, and feelings. For me, my iPhone records and displays my life; the good, the bad, the memorable, the not-so-memorable pictures of my cat that I end up deleting(sorry, Batman). I have pictures with my family, my boyfriend, my friends. Having pictures is a wonderful thing, especially when I moved away from my friends and boyfriend; looking at pictures with them can bring a smile to my face in an instant. I have videos from when my puppy was 9 weeks, to now at 9 months. If I want to I can look back and watch her grow and mature, I can hear as her bark slowly progressed from a baby-like whine to a threatening, deep, full grown German Shepherd bark. I can flip through the pictures and videos from the music festival, Warped Tour, I went to last weekend. 

In addition to tons of memories, I have pictures of the artwork I've created. When I met my soon-to-be art  teacher at school, showing her my portfolio was a breeze, I just emailed her some of my pieces. I have most of my writing on my phone as well. No matter how much I love feeling a pen in my hand and having those telltale ink spots on my forearms, having it digitally is easier for editing and safekeeping. I have poems, scattered thoughts, and even notes and the beginning of a book I'm working on. I also use this application called 1 Second Everyday where everyday I record a one second video and after a year passes, it creates a compilation of all the videos into one 6 minute long clip about my life in a year. It reminds me to pay attention to the little things throughout my day. 

I'm running back into a burning building for things I've created, poems, paintings; I'm running back the for memories, concerts, family; I'm running back for the things I love and things that make me, well, me.

What are you running back for?