At the moment, no other form of media coverage can beat the power of teenage girls with iPhones.

Recently, I attended a very crowded concert with a few friends, where the audience packed itself into the standing-room-only space and waited with anticipation for the performance. Lucky enough to maneuver our way towards the edge of the stage, my friends and I remained behind the few rows of people that separated us from the main act. In my mind, we stood in prime position to view the show without the obstruction of tall people or hat-wearers, but as the lights dimmed, chaos descended upon the crowd. The opening music began, the lead singer emerged, and as if on cue, a wall of glowing camera phones solidified directly in my line of vision.

Our generation has grown up in a culture that prioritizes sharing on social media. But when does this desire to share overcome our own presence in life? At this concert, for example, about half of the audience spent the evening recording the entire two-hour show, meaning that their eyes stayed glued to their camera screens throughout the whole performance, a realization that forced me to guiltily put my own camera away. Sometimes, all of the time we spend posting pictures online detracts from the moments we encounter in real life. Of course, technology has provided us with incredible ways to communicate and share our experiences, but what good is posting a video of your favorite band on Facebook if you were too busy watching your own phone screen while they performed your favorite song live? Did you even really “see” them?

With this in mind, I would encourage us all to put our phones down for a moment. Not just for the sake of the short people standing behind you, but also for your own wellbeing. As we near Thanksgiving, it’s important to appreciate the joyful moments associated with seeing your favorite band perform live or eating a delicious dessert. Just keep in mind, that you only need to record the moment on Instagram for yourself, not for your friends or followers. We experience the most important things in life for ourselves, not for our cell phones.