Have you ever used your phone during a concert or game? Using snapchat to capture the moment or event you are attending.

We’re used to the complaint that we are taking pictures rather than living in the moment, and that makes our experiences poorer. We don’t even remember half the pictures we take. The usage of cellphones – Media in general – is killing our social interactions.

A few weeks ago, I was walking around the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) campus for a visit. I noticed that almost every student had a cellphone out to text their friends or check social media.

Do we even remember a time where cellphones were something you used in private or during your downtime? It has now become an extreme obsession.

How about a moment with your significant other? Traditional proclamations of love, whether it’s writing cheesy hand-written letters or waiting for the significant other’s parental blessing, are only used by people of an older generation. Unfortunately for teenagers my age, we grew up in the digital gap. We are torn between the traditional and modern advances of ideas and technology. We are basically stuck in the middle.

“I try not to use my phone when I’m around my boyfriend. I want us to socialize with each other instead of using our phones. I wanted to be in the moment with him,” said Mina Torres, junior.

While technology can be helpful, it can also destroy the social structure of society. Without social structure, we are forced to retreat into a solitary lifestyle.

According to New York Time Magazine analyst Jennifer Beese, 90% of American adults own a cell phone and 67% of those owners find themselves checking their phone every hour in a single day.

The idea of being present in the moment is perishing so fast. The value of our experiences are fleeting. We miss the chance of experiencing first-hand emotions. We use apps that helps us fire those emotions. Conversations become scarce. Every time a new social media app comes out or some sort of technology it distances us from further from each other. It feels like we are gaining something, but in reality, we are losing a whole lot.

“Time is the most valuable commodity on the planet. It is the one thing that can never be bought or sold, but can be rented or given,” said ,former Executive from Time Magazine, Tom Dusevic.

Every time that we decide to do something with our time, we are actively not doing everything and anything else with it. We are essentially trading off experiences: experiences that make up our lives. So put down your phones and live.

See the world – how it’s meant to be seen.