Airpods have become a very important part of our generation's everyday life. They have become essential in public places. When I walk around the hallways at school at least 70% of kids have an earbud in their ear listening to music. When I’m in the classroom and we are doing an assignment or writing something on our computer, almost half the class is listening to music. Teachers actually have to tell students to take out their airpods when we are taking tests or quizzes. When kids are walking to school, on the bus, or even hanging out with their friends, they are listening to music. 

People use music for different reasons, some use it to escape reality in situations that make them anxious. Others use it because it’s the only thing that gets them to focus. Some people don’t even have music playing, they just put in earbuds so that nobody talks to them. Using airpods definitely has its benefits such as creating a calming environment in situations that might stress you out. However, there's also many negative consequences of using them. It has hurt our generation socially. Instead of talking to our friends and communicating with people while we are walking in the hallway or sitting in class before homeroom, everyone is just listening to music in a silent classroom. As a generation we lack the knowledge of how to have an actual conversation with someone. 

This isn’t only hurting us now, but it’s going to hurt us in the future when we have to go to college, go on job interviews, meet new people, and even when we start working. In the real world, when you have a family to take care of, a job to do, and people that depend on you, it’s not realistic to just put in your airpod and shut out the world. This is an issue that needs to be resolved very soon. It is okay to want to listen to music sometimes, but you shouldn’t be dependent on your earbuds all the time. When you're in a place where you don’t know a lot of people and you're a little uncomfortable, most kids think to just put their airpods in and go on their phones. What they don’t realize is that this is making the problem much worse. You're making yourself even more isolated and making it more difficult to meet new people. A balance needs to be created, it’s okay to be on your phone a little bit or have music playing sometimes, but not so much that you are unable to carry a conversation with somebody. As humans, it’s very important for our mental health to socialize with people, when you can’t do that it makes your life much more isolating and makes you feel a lot lonelier. Together, not just as a generation I believe we can resolve this issue. It just starts with taking out your earbuds.