Can You Listen and Text?

I have a friend who does nothing at all but text. Seemingly every minute of every hour of every single day. We all do it. I do it. But I don't always like it. In fact, its one of my least favorite forms of communication. Because, often, I'll be out with this friend and we'll be talking and she'll be texting and though she swears that she's listening I always feel like she isn't at all. And that is true with everyone. When they're texting and talking to you, I secretly feel like they are just not really hearing you. I have a love hate relationship with it. I like that when you have to talk to someone but you don't really want to call them, you can just text. But, in that same vein, I also don't like that. It's an easy way out. For instance, I know someone who talks for hours on end when you get them on the phone. Do I call this person? Nope. Texting is so much easier. I should call them though. Here's the thing, sometimes we should talk to each other and not through a little electronic device that does it for us. Especially when you're with someone face to face. Give them the time. Talk to them. I've taken a lot of classes on communication and though I understand completely why texting is popular, I often wish we'd let it go just a little in favor of a good old fashioned voiced conversation. I read an article once for a paper about a man who divorced his wife via a text message. Though that's an extreme example, it's kind of true of texting today. Obviously, he should have called her, but since there was an easy way out ( and the fact that the man was a coward) he took it. This isn't going to stop anybody and honestly, I'm not going to stop texting but it is something to think about. The next time you are with somebody and they're talking to you and you're texting while they're talking to you, maybe listen more. We've all done this, especially in classes (though not this one) and I can assure you that I was not listening to the teacher when I did. Some people are sure they can do both, text and listen carefully, but I'm still not convinced.