Thirty-three years ago, you were sent off on a space mission. In space, you don’t age, for time stands still. You have returned to Earth and are observing the world you were once a part of.

“What the hell is going on?” is your first thought after opening the capsule of the spacecraft and stepping out into the bustling city of 2024. Still clad in your spacesuit, you venture into the city, letting yourself be engulfed by the sea of people. No one notices your somewhat peculiar outfit. Most people don’t even look up. You meet dead stares and sense a tense busyness in the people you pass by. In their hands, they clutch a small device. They only look at their devices and don’t see where they are going; yet somehow, they avoid bumping into each other. You see some young people in front of a fountain, dancing for their device. They almost seem to worship it. There are people talking, but not to each other. They talk to their devices, and they talk loudly, as if their voices need to reach someone very far away. Out of the corner of your eye, you see a child in a stroller trying to get their parents’ attention while their fingers tap intensely on the devices. You see apathetic people on the move, but also people sitting on the sidewalk with cardboard cups in front of them. You observe a young woman sitting quietly on the ground. Her gaze is dull. She occasionally looks up at the passersby to make eye contact, but no one looks down.

Where have all the smiles gone? Why aren’t people talking and laughing anymore? Why are they not present in the moment? You are puzzled by this behavior and make your way back to the spacecraft. This was a worrisome reunion that made a great impression on you. Before long, you see Earth as a blue sphere, slowly becoming smaller and smaller. You wonder if you will ever return.