La Voz de Galicia – Abril 25, 2025 →
The act of writing is very different from, for example, playing an instrument in front of an audience. When I was on stage, the response was immediate— the audience could like or dislike my way of performing, but I felt that I could read their emotions. On the other hand, every week, when I write these columns, despite knowing that they will be published on Friday and that there will be some people who read them, I know I won’t be able to read the emotions they feel when they read them. And that’s something I am still learning in this other way of expressing myself, and something I’m grateful for: the freedom of the lack of immediacy.
Still, for some reason (and also because of my tendency to isolate myself in my own world), I decided to ask ChatGPT what it thought of my weekly columns. And I have to admit, the response was incredibly pleasant, like that of a friend who wants to make you feel good, praising the “approachable and thoughtful” style of my writing. Then I thought about the time it took the algorithm to give me an opinion, and how long it would take a friend, and that’s when I returned to the idea of the freedom I feel in the lack of immediacy. Because it is in those times we share with others where we learn the most, from them and from ourselves. And those times we shouldn’t replace with algorithms. But without realizing it, we already do, we talk more to our digital devices than to the people we consider important in our lives, and it is becoming harder and harder to not have an immediate response to an important question. It seems that going through life without hurry, or without expecting an immediate result, is already an exception. A curious way of evolving for our generation…
