I recently hosted a dinner party at my home.  One of the highlights of the evening (for me) was the fact that all of our guests sat around the table and actually talked to one another.

Yes – we engaged in conversation.

No one was staring at their phones, answering texts, mindlessly checking their email, or watching a screen of any kind.  We were actively communicating with each other – talking, laughing, and sharing our thoughts and opinions through direct verbal interaction, something that is often lacking in this digital day and age.

There was no need to attempt to decipher a cryptic text, emoticon, or comment.  If someone said something confusing or made a comment that needed clarification, it was easy to read the faces of those around the table that further explanations were necessary to get one’s point across (and in the intended manner).

For Americans, this type of face-to-face communication is becoming less common.  Teens will text each other (in the same room) rather than speak, a misplaced tweet or posted picture can cause emotional stress, and no one makes eye contact with one another out in public anymore, even to exchange such simple pleasantries as “hello” or “thank you.”

I’ve been lucky enough to travel pretty extensively in my life, and I’ve had the opportunity to visit Europe on several occasions (as well as take up residence there for a brief period in my younger years).  The art of conversation is not lost on Europeans, as they still actively participate in discussions over dinner, coffee, or by visiting friends or relatives.  They can discuss a book they’ve read, a newspaper article they’ve perused, or even talk extensively about their hobbies or interests.

It used to be that way here in the States as well.  As a youngster, I fondly remember when we would visit friends – on a weeknight, for no other reason other than to see them and catch-up on their lives while sitting on their porch or around their dining room table.  The adults would drink coffee and maybe nosh on a piece of cake while the kids played in the yard or down in the basement.

No one shared their favorite Reddit or YouTube video, kept their eyes cast downward to the glow of a handheld device, or asked if there was a plug nearby so they could hook up a charger.

Am I being foolishly naïve and nostalgic for a way of life that is gone forever?

Perhaps, but I do know this much.  All of the participants enjoyed the dinner party so much that we are making plans to do it again in the future – sans electronics.

Maybe that in itself says something about the bad habits we’ve picked up in the digital age, and how we long for connections that are simple, honest, and personal.

Just a thought.