Lost world of Dictionary & Directory

I was reading a novel and got stuck on a word.I instantly searched on search engine on my mobile and got the meaning.At that moment ,my kid suggested I could have asked orally and there was no need of typing too.I really wondered how far our generation has come.

I was in second grade when I got my first dictionary.It was the most treasured possession at that time.Finding meaning of a word in dictionary was the most enjoyable task and I used to love it like anything.As soon as I understood the meaning ,I used to feel so confident and happy.We used to play games in which ,we friends used to ask each other meaning from dictionary.Also we used to have a task of learning five new words weekly and so on.In short, dictionary was a door to world of words-words to express myself freely and aptly.Gradually over years with revolution in technology, the physical dictionary got replaced with the software.But honestly I miss that charm,that excitement .The tact of finding a word in the book,understanding its noun,verb,adjective form,its multiple meanings in a physical format is a mental and exciting exercise which one may miss in using online version always.

I was going through some old records when I found a small pocket telephone diary.It was the one, I used to carry everywhere during my graduation days.It instantly brought a smile when I read names of so many colleagues ,trainers,teachers,relatives .Most of them were landline numbers with proper std code and then a few mobile numbers.Landline was installed at my residence during my teens.A big telephone directory was a compulsory accompaniment and perfect time pass during holidays.Searching for names of people whom we know , based on the area of residence and then tracing their numbers used to be delight.I always loved this work of tracing someone's number in the directory.Then we used to maintain a diary also for frequently used and outstation numbers.Every year making a new diary and updating all the details would be my privileged task.During those days we used to get blank calls sometime.Probably they were by people who had traced our numbers through directory and had no work but just curious.It entailed a long discussion on guessing who might have called .I remember of making some blank calls myself as a part of fun games.Sadly as mobile phones came this directory became obsolete.But it has surely helped me in habit of remembering numbers of inner circle.

Whether Dictionary or Directory,both are a part of my growing years.They have helped a lot in building my vocabulary,understanding of words,understanding of locating numbers,importance of memorising some important numbers.Today when we have access to all these information on spur of the moment I seriously feel the value of information diminishes.How many of us bother to memorise the contact numbers of even our inner circle members?.Similarly when meanings of words are available so easily ,who will take efforts to remember them.??

With over simplification and easy accessibility beauty of things get lost.I wonder in this pursuit of comfort through technology are we not losing simple little joys and becoming more and more lethargic mentally??But then its also a fact that unless we move forward without baggage of old we cannot find happiness in new developments.Perhaps there is no option than to find innovative ways of joy with new ,efficient and knowledgeable virtual assistants.

It is rightly said

"It is only when the mind is free from the old that it meets everything anew, and in that there is joy."

-Jiddu Krishnamurti