My cousins look moved while I’m trying to conjure sympathy from somewhere within. It proves hard as the sarcastic voice in my head keeps saying: “Don’t do it then! End of story!” Needless to say that Shatha won the contest and became the first Arab female to win this programme
Rasha al Raisi -
1995: A social study takes place in a village in Pennsylvania, US. The subjects are provided with free Internet connection and computers in their houses. They’re given training on the computer usage, mainly focusing on building social relationships on the Internet. The subjects weren’t aware of the aim of this study. All they knew that their social behaviour was monitored by social scientists. Within two years of the experiment, the scientist noticed that the subjects spent more time on the net socializing with strangers they’d never met and less time with people within their
village.
2007: I’m sitting in the living room of my aunt’s house, along with her two daughters. The elder is getting married; the family of the groom is downstairs discussing wedding details, while we’re upstairs watching season 4 of Start Academy. The bride and her sister are updating me with what’s been happening so far in this reality show. At the moment, the Iraqi contest Shatha Hasoun is sobbing saying that she doesn’t want to do the nose job, as it will affect her voice and she might lose it forever.
My cousins look moved while I’m trying to conjure sympathy from somewhere within. It proves hard as the sarcastic voice in my head keeps saying: “Don’t do it then! End of story!” Needless to say that Shatha won the contest and became the first Arab female to win this programme.
2007: Mum and I are attending a wedding of a relative. At 10.45 pm, the guests start getting ready to leave. Everybody is looking at their watches anxiously, including my aunt. Very few guests including us remain and mum states that the groom is yet to come, in case they haven’t noticed. “It’s time for the Turkish series Nour.” They say. Mum asks innocently if there is a re-run of it, instead of them leaving the wedding so abruptly. My aunt answers in a matter of fact: “Of course! On Saturday morning. I wake up at 5 and watch the whole week’s episodes. In case I missed anything!” When she sees our astonished looks she says: “You should start watching it too! Turkish culture is so close to ours. They value family life like us.” The divorce rates in the Arab world soar, while Nour is being romanced by Muhanad in 160 episodes (two years). Years later, a Saudi man divorces his wife in the airport for holding his hand in public, the way they do in Turkish series.
2016: In a restaurant having dinner with my family. A family of four is sitting next to us, enveloped by absolute silence. Husband and wife are on their smartphones, children (aged less than 10) are on their tablets. The only person without a smart device is the nanny, who is shoving spoonful of rice in the children’s mouths. I wish she could do the same with the parents, as they’re too busy to notice that their food is getting
cold.
2017: while waiting in a clinic, a south Asian woman and her four-year-old boy join me. The receptionist hurries to them and offers the kid a canned juice. Both seem pleased till the receptionist asks politely if she could bring the boy a tablet with games on. The mother gives her an annoyed look saying that her son is not allowed to have one. I think to myself: “good for you!” A few seconds later, the mother takes out her smartphone and gets too absorbed. She doesn’t notice that her boy is aiming an imaginary slingshot at us, out of shear boredom.
Rasha al Raisi is a certified
skills trainer and the
author of: The World According to Bahja. rashabooks@yahoo.com
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