'Cause You'll Never Know What You'll Miss

My father always told me that Teddy Roosevelt, his favorite US president, was wrong when he said, "comparison is the thief of joy." Despite the weight the quote holds, he loved to remind me that the true thieves are the chances we never take. It's living in a world of constant unknowns and what-could-have-been thoughts. Growing up he would teach my brother and I to seek adventure and find answers to every question that filled our young minds. I have been doing that for as long as I can remember. Teachers, friends' parents, even the nice old ladies at church all knew me as the curious one of Stephen Lee's children. Little Lucy Lee, that's what they called me.

Probably the biggest thing my dad was against was cellphones. I didn't get my first one until I was 15 years old and I had to share it with my brother. Plus, it was a flip phone. My father wanted us to find opportunities outside of technology. He said it would encapsulate our brains and wire them to addiction. He didn't even allow devices in the house. If we wanted to learn something we'd have to go to the library and use the computer there. Or better yet, read a book on it. Any normal teenager of today's time would recoil at the thought of not being able to have the world at their fingertips. One click, one scroll, one search away, and your screen is suddenly whisked into a satellite image of the Amazon rain forest. It's truly amazing how far it has come over the years and it's only advancing from here. If my dad were still here he'd be berating it to shreds. People would call his comments unsolicited criticism, I called it wisdom. I still live by my dad's way of life as closely as I can. I go to the local library in search of my next great read, take hikes at stranger-filled parks to talk to them, and only drink water. I've never had a drop of anything else, unless you count cherry flavored cough syrup. I unfortunately have given in to some of the novelties of today. Such as, the latest iPhone. I'm lucky enough to be able to afford one of those hefty-priced suckers. I have a single social media account for Facebook and limit my everyday use. The only times I'm ever on my phone for extended periods of time are when I'm reading an e-book or catching up with a friend.

Now, if it weren't for my dad's hatred against such devices. I never would've met my long-time best friend, Anthony. When I go out for runs I often see people on their phones not paying any attention to their surroundings. They don't even think to stop for a minute, to breathe in the fresh air, and take in the beautiful sights God has blessed us with. I'm sure if I were raised differently I'd be just like them. But, I thankfully wasn't. I met Anthony Paredes on one of those various outings. We were both fresh out of college, I had graduated with a degree in historic preservation. Him, with one in Computer Science. Upon meeting him, I'd already assumed we'd be polar opposites. He had headphones clasped around his neck with his phone in his hand. His eyes were glued to the screen and he fortunately unfortunately wasn't looking where he was going. I was running in the opposite direction on my way to the water station in the park. Not to my surprise, we collided and tumbled down the hill like playful kids. He got up first and dusted off the grass from his track suit and held out a hand to help me up off the ground. Once we finished trudging ourselves back up the hill and caught our breath I could feel my father's effect on my judgement of others coming out in my first words to him. I hit him with my best scowl and let my tongue lash out.

"Were you even paying attention where you were walking, buddy? We both could've gotten more than just grass stains. It's so inconsiderate of you to not look before you go." I sounded exactly like my dad it was almost frightening.

"Ma'am, I think you're overreacting just a tad. We both couldn't have gotten more than a single bruise. Plus, the ground is still soft from the rain last night, so that should've cushioned our fall quite well" he replied while pinching his fingers to demonstrate the amount of my 'overreacting.'

I scoffed in return, "First off, don't ma'am me, I'm not a teacher. Secondly, I don't need an explanation on how it 'couldn't have been worse,' when it very well could have. Thirdly, it was all your fault because your brain was preoccupied with your stupid phone, you could vice versa both those objects. And finally fourth, I think you owe me an apology and new running attire, this green will never come out."

"I don't know who you're calling stupid, because I just so happened to just graduate with a degree in computer science. Which I'm pretty sure qualifies me to be quite the scholar. But is there anything else you want to add to your grocery list?" He sneered.

"No, but I expect you to do as I wish. Wouldn't want to leave a girl unhappy would ya, Mr. Smarty Pants?" I sassed as I folded my arms.

"Fine." he paused. "I'm sorry, that you're an entitled b-word that expects too much from people who accidentally bumped into her."

"What b-word are you referring to?"

"Ah, I won't go that far with that one. Brat is the word. You're a brat." He says whilst jutting his pointer finger at me.

Without thinking, I snatched his phone from his grasp and shoved it into my back pocket and started running as fast as I could. This little rectangle of endless distraction was like bait for a fish. Surprisingly, he was able to maintain a similar speed and remained a few paces behind me. Eventually, we made it to the nearby shopping center stopping in front of the doors to a clothing store. After a few moments of letting our heavy breathing settle we leaned against the wall of the building letting the cool brick chill our backs.

I took his phone out and teasingly waved it in his face. He tried to reach for it but I pulled it away swiftly. "Not so fast, you've gotta earn this back."

"What are you, 12? For a woman who looks to be in her early twenties, you sure do act like a child."

"You sure are on fire with those insults. At this rate you'll never see your precious phone again. And for the record, I'm 22 years old and it's very rude to assume a woman's age."

"You know I can charge you with theft, right?"

"You'll get it back, don't worry. You just need to learn your lesson first."

"What lesson is there to be learned?" He asked begrudgingly.

"To not be on your phone all the time, of course."

"That's what this is about?! How do you expect me to learn? I'm already attached to it at the hip."

"Apologize, then buy me a new outfit, like I told you. We're already at the store so you might as well. And in return I can help you learn to have a healthy relationship with your phone."

"You really have no idea how annoying you are, do you? But anyway, I'm sorry for running into you. Let's go find something for you to wear, though you already look fine."

I walked out of the dressing room in my final pick. It was a dark teal two-piece with long sleeves and a crisscross back. The top was cropped and the leggings ended at my ankles. Satisfied, I tossed his phone back. He immediately checked his notifications and responded to at least three messages before seeing that I changed back into what I came in.

"I've got my work cut out for me."

That's how our tantalizing friendship started. Over the course of the next few weeks we met up at the park nearly everyday. We started out by deleting the apps he used the least and removing the contacts he no longer talked to. We then found out his urges and times he pulled his phone out the most. Of course we tried other settings such as the library and restaurants, I even let him walk my dog. I recommended him reading, he opted for audio books as they're more visually stimulating than words on a page to him. I've learned that he loves horror and fantasy novels the most. Weeks turned into months and my internship at the museum was going to start soon, so we had to make our meetings on weekends only. Which was unfortunate, as I was only starting to get to know him better. In our time together we learned a lot about each other. All our favorites from colors to movies. He even ate out at my job just to come see me. Soon enough we became good friends. Unlikely friends, too. Before meeting him I wouldn't even bother talking to someone staring at their phone. Now I know sometimes you have to be the one to initiate someone's attention. I learned that from him and I'll forever be grateful. If it weren't for his silly stupid phone and my upbringing to hold grudges against technology, we would've never met. It didn't necessarily steal my joy but gave me some. If my father were here, he'd probably say different, but that's just the way he was.

Those months turned into years. As we got older we never lost touch even when getting settled into our careers, it was through technology that we were able to do that. Our friendship eventually blossomed into something much more. Not only was Anthony Paredes my best friend, and my Mr. Smarty Pants, but he was my soulmate. And I was his. We're 30 now, married, with two lovely kiddos and three dogs in our little wooded cabin. We have both a phone and a hatred of the thing to thank for our future together. Take this as a lesson to stop for just a moment, put the phone away, look around and put your senses to use, 'cause you'll never know what you'll miss.

-Lucile Paredes