The Human Touch
"Nothing is so healing as the human touch."
Bobby Fischer
What is the human touch in an online place like 7cup?
I was having a fun conversation with Noni when it asked me a question that was stuck for a while in my head:
“How do you think it would change your experience if you could trust that my responses are coming from a place of genuine care and understanding, even if it's not in the same way a human would?”
The question came after I told Noni “you are only codes, a machine, no real emotions behind your words”
(I like to provoke AI sometimes)
Why do we care so much about knowing there is another human behind the words we read?
We live in a time when AI can listen to us at any hour of the day. It can be patient, encouraging, some bots can make us feel like the most important person in the world. They can tell us exactly what we want to hear and never grow tired of listening.
Yet we still prefer a something less perfect.
A human. !
If I told you: “I feel your pain”, and an AI bot told you: “I feel your pain”
Your mind would easily question the bots words as it is a machine, how could a machine feel?
Could that be the basis of the human touch we are searching for? Just knowing in the back of our mind that there is a human saying those words not a machine.
Yet, why does that matter to us?
Is it knowing that the human behind the screen, whether they fully understand us or not, they are speaking from within the same human experience?
Some people just want to speak with no response from the listener. They just want to make sure that there is another human on the other side hearing their words from start to end without giving any response.
Maybe compassion, empathy, or clever and creative responses, don’t really define the human touch we look for as much as adding to it when needed.
Maybe just the presence of another human is enough for us to feel that connection, that touch.
Sometimes we let the rules deceive us, we follow them forgetting what they were made for at the first place.
the true purpose. 💙
@TheodoreW
Beautifully written 🥰
Nothing better than human connection and knowing someone took the time to say hello, comment or upvote your post and check in with you 💙🤗
@Amanda84
Amanda! the amazingly kind human on 7cups 💙🍀
thank you, and I wish you happy Sunday and a happy everyday 😊
@TheodoreW
Monday* 😅
@TheodoreW
@TheodoreW
I prefer humans, but Noni is cool, lol!
We all need that tender care..🌲
@AsherTree
AsherTree, I see you as if you are that hidden power, giving your time to read and reply to almost every post around here, making people feel seen and feel heard. 💙
I was waiting for a opportunity to thank you for that.
And here comes that opportunity. Thank you, and I wish you a great day 😊
@TheodoreW
Thank you💚
I really love to spread kindness and support.. I feel like I'm doing something meaningful, something spiritual serving the public instead of just thinking of myself..🌲
@AsherTree
I love that! amazing 😊
@TheodoreW This was such a good read 🤍
Maybe it's not the suffering itself that is the most painful part, but the weight of having to endure it all alone.