I have always loved words ever since I was a little girl, and had aspired to tell stories with these 26 alphabets arranged in every which way possible. With that being said, emojis are also one of the most adorable features to be included in our daily lives through the wonders of technology, and suffice to say, I use them more often than I should.
Hence, I decided to try using only emojis in my text messages for one whole day. It was tough to begin with, as I was so used to replying and starting conversations with at least one or two words. Therefore, it proved to be a challenge, because even with the 941 number of emojis on WhatsApp, I still found it tough—and yes, I counted that.
However, as tough as it sounded, I found it much fun to experiment with the way we utilise social media, and excited right from the get-go. I even learned 5 things from my 24 hours with emojis, and this was exactly what happened.
1. You can expect a reply in the next thirty minutes.
Replying to text messages isn’t rocket science, but some still take a billion years to reply, even after they have seen our messages. Yes, technology makes it even harder on us with all the “ticks” and “seen” notifications, which was perhaps designed to ruin relationships. However, I would say that I’m pretty good at replying text messages…especially if they are urgent.
Replying with only emojis though, is a whole different ball game. I wound up looking through the entire list of emojis, searching for the right ones. Some are pretty simple, for instance the ‘hellos’ and ‘okays’. It gets harder when you are replying to messages which require text in reply, for instance your house address. I managed to dodge this by simply getting a notepad and a pen to write it down, and then take a snapshot of it. Hey, nobody said pictures weren’t allowed!
2. There aren’t enough emojis to convey my thoughts.
Still, there aren’t enough emojis to state how I really feel. You would think that with 941 to choose from, I would eventually find one, but there aren’t any alphabet emojis, so even if I chose to spell out the words, I couldn’t do it. As I eagerly await for the update for that, I’m also anticipating for more food emojis.
Currently, there are 59 number of food emojis on Whatsapp, but there aren’t localised ones such as curry puff, teh o’ ais, or roti canai. Yes, I’m well aware that Whatsapp isn’t based in Malaysia, but it would be nice if someday, these could somehow be included. It would really up the texting game, whenever we are having food cravings, and simply want to spam a friend to ask him or her out to get that specific meal.
3. Yet, I’m equally as fascinated by the array that exists.
Still with that being said, I am rather impressed with the array of emojis that currently exist. I spent more time than I should examining each one and I realise that I have broadened by emoji vocabulary in 24 hours. Did you know that there is actually an emoji for a gas pump, a theme park and a poodle? Because I did not.
If anything, this experiment has taught me to look at the finer details and to realise the little things which programmers of WhatsApp have included to allow us to illustrate our texts. It’s also always much fun when the app receives an update and includes new emojis. These little things somehow brightens up our day, perhaps because it has already become so ingrained in our daily lives that it becomes instantly relatable when we see an emoji that we can connect with.
4. Friends will be equally as amused as you would be.
For instance, when I conversed using only emojis, my friends were equally as amused as I was. They could understand what I was saying, even when I went to great lengths such as searching up the clock emojis to convey the message of what time we should arrive at a certain location for a meetup.
Perhaps it is something which we have learnt all our lives, but images speak a thousand words and I need not type them out in order for other people to understand. It clicks instantaneously, and that is the power of the human mind in deciphering codes, in this case—emojis.
5. It truly tests your creativity, and really is all fun and games.
After 24 hours of just emojis, I realised how much creative juice I have churned out in my text messages. It was a fun experiment nonetheless, even when I had to go through extra effort in order to say what I mean. I also gained much appreciation for programmers and designers who go to great lengths in order to create these emoticons that truly makes the experience of texting all the more exciting.
I remember the days when I had press a button several times in order for a particular alphabet to appear. This is something kids this generation may not be able to experience any longer, but having lived through that when I was a little girl, I now appreciate emojis and the way it colours our virtual conversations with others.
Emojis have given us a chance to replace words with images to our best capabilities, and 24 hours of living only with them, it made texting all the more fun, and is something I recommend you should give a go too. At the very least, you would come out of it with a bucketful of laughs, and a newfound love for the images that we meet daily on WhatsApp.