Milton Academy Hosts TextLess Day

Five years ago, friends of Merritt Levitan wanted to take action in the face of unimaginable tragedy. In doing so, they started a movement. Today, the flagship TextLess Live More chapter at Milton Academy is hosting their first TextLess Live More Day of the year, and the board members are looking forward to carrying forth the mission of the Milton students who came before them. Senior Sadie Murray is one of the Heads of the TextLess Live More Board this year. She joined the board during her freshman year and has been a member since. “I was feeling annoyed by how much time my friends spent on their phone,” she explains. “Everywhere we went someone had to take a picture or post about what we were doing. Freshman fall, I started going to the open meetings because I found it refreshing to go to a space where I could enjoy the presence of the people around me without feeling the need to constantly check my phone.” “As I have gotten a little bit older and now have my license, I feel so lucky that I am on TextLess. It really has helped me to put my phone in the glove compartment and not check it while I drive. All around me when I am driving I see other drivers on their phones. I hope that when they see the TextLess Live More sticker on my car they can be inspired to put their phones away too.” The Milton Academy TextLess Live More board, comprised this year of sixteen students, offers a TextLess Live More day every month with the goal of changing students’ relationships with their devices. “We hope that a good majority of the student body will turn off their phones with us at assembly, and that a few hundred will keep off their phones for at least a portion of the day,” says Murray of their first day of the year. “If they can stay off their phone for a day, they can stay off their phone while they are driving.” Murray and her fellow TextLess board members feel that it is up to their generation to change the culture around cell phone use. “We are growing up in a world where there are new technological advancements every day,” she says, “and in order to create a balanced world, we need to make sure we figure out how to use technology positively and responsibly...and that we spend time away from our devices in order to connect with others in our community.” When asked what she would say to students interested in bringing TextLess Live More to their school, Murray responded excitedly: “Do it! Textless Live More has made students much more conscious of how dangerous it is to text and drive and of the importance of putting your phones away to connect with friends. Looking around the student center it is common to see TextLess Live More stickers on phones/computers and bracelets on people’s wrists. We hope that when people go to reach for their phone while they are driving they will think about us and put it away, because they are aware of the dangers of texting while driving.” As far as the effect of the organization on her personally, Murray says: “Textless Live More has made me a more present person. With my friends, I make a conscious effort to keep off my phone and while driving I have never gone on my phone. I am a safer driver, better friend, and happier person because of TextLess Live More. I no longer feel the burden of constantly having to check my phone, and because of that I feel more free.”