Nature vs Technology

In the last few months, the world (most of it) was completely absorbed by the FIFA World Cup fever in South Africa. Shops closed early because the workers wanted to rush home to watch the matches; restaurants, bars and cafes opened till late; eBay made a killing with football jerseys sales and the VUVUZELA became a worldwide phenomenon.

However, way above all of that was a 2 1/2 year old cephalopod called Paul. He stole the hearts of many people by correctly predicting 7 of Germany's matches in the World Cup and the final match between Spain and the Netherlands. His predictions caused uproars in some nations and also turned ordinary people into millionaires overnight. Why I found him so amazing was that in this day and age of technology, he came up trumps above all the gadgets in the world and proved to the world that there is something more special, more divine out there, besides humans and technology. Why is it that we, with all our high-tech, 'multi-functioned' gizmos, weren't able to predict the winners of the World Cup and this normal-looking sea creature could? This was nature's way of reminding us of the basic way of life.

In the olden days, travellers would look to the stars to find their way, people lived their lives according to the lunar cycle, and everyone had to look at the sun to tell the time. What baffles me is that why, in this day and age, do we become more and more oblivious to nature when it is the one thing that we can rely on the most?

Don't get me wrong, I am a gadget addict - being the proud owner and user of an iPhone 3Gs. But I certainly don't ignore the 'signs' that I see along the way, and still rely on my gut-feeling when it comes to making tough decisions. I truly and honestly feel that there needs to be a balance between what's man-made and nature, and sadly, many have lost their way and found themselves in the 'new world', as some call it.

Let's all take a step back and remind ourselves of what's truly 'out there' and that there are things in this world that is beyond our comprehension and embrace it.