The Retreat

- Vibha Lohani

“The exodus happened many years ago, somewhere around 2050. The last of the generation actually went berserk… mm, crazy. They kept asking for something that sounded very dangerous.” said the GUIDE. Ray smiled at the word thrown-up on the screen. He had just placed his Tech Snap Device in front of the mural and the Generation Unique Identification Device (GUIDE) was activated. It gave out all the information about the mural which was crafted to show the exodus of a generation who believed that life existed beyond the digital systems. They had raised their voices against the machines and demanded something called CONVERSATION.

The word itself sounded so appalling that some of the younger generation revolted against their elders. New parents were aghast at this age old concept called CONVERSATION.

“Does this mean that the digital babysitters will be taken away?” A scared mother is seen posing a question on the screen.

“They want to take the world back to the Dark Ages.” a comment shot up on TWITTER. It was the longest running interface where people used words to make a statement. Now is the age of VADER (Visual Analogue Device for Expression & Reaction). People can make their presence felt more effectively through videos and GIFs. One even had the option to mask their identity after the privacy brigade revolted some years back. This was giving the authorities a tough time identifying offenders and cons, but the masks were cool.

Ray’s thoughts returned to the exodus. A handful of people had risen against complete digitization but their revolt didn’t last long. Each one was traced through their social media accounts and arrested. This was of course long before the privacy brigade.

Ray kept Tech Snap back into his pocket and walked ahead. This was the section where maximum work was needed. People would be trained here on ‘how to use books’. Ray had managed to create a physical library. It was tedious but he taught himself. He stood for a while, admiring his own work.

Today was the grand opening of his Conversation Retreat!

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