What's the buzz

Over the last two decades, texting has become part of daily life. This week marks the 20th anniversary of SMS, or short message service. Can you still recall the first text message you sent or received? Do you have a memorable story related to texting? China Daily cellphone news readers share their stories with us.

The text messages that I still remember are those I sent to a girl in high school. We didn't have our own cellphones, I used my brother's and she used her father's, so the messages had to appear normal even though they were actually special to us. I can still feel the excitement and surprise when I received her texts.

XIAOBU, Beijing

Thirteen years ago I was a high school student. I was in the school's dancing team and secretly in my heart I fell in love with the new dancing teacher who had just graduated from university. When I got my first cellphone, I immediately sent my first message to her, of course not a confession of love, but only to let her know that I had a phone. Texting at that time was so pure without junk messages. So was my understanding about love.

JA, Foshan, Guangdong province

I was so envious of those who had cellphones when I studied at university. At that time I didn't have one so I borrowed my roommate's and sent a message to a friend at another university. The message I sent was not in Chinese but pinyin, surprisingly, my friend understood it. I got my own phone when I was a sophomore and I would send as many as 1,200 messages a month. Technology changes life.

GONGGUANGBING, Haikou, Hainan province

I can still recall the first message my mother sent to me. She told me she missed me and asked me to take care of myself. She was not well educated, but the simple words were moving and warming. Now I often make calls to my parents, but I will use text messages to express strong feelings. For instance, on Thanksgiving Day, I sent them a very long text message shedding grateful tears for their love. At such moments, messages make feelings deeper.

XIAOJINGZI, Kunming, Yunnan province

The first meaningful message I remember was the one I sent to my father on his birthday, telling him I love him. I'm not good at expressing myself, but I know my parents do a lot of things for me. They have worked hard so that I can have better education and a better life. Their love is unconditional and selfless, I will always be grateful.

A READER, Shijiazhuang, Hebei province

Four years ago it was a message that started my campus life. I remember that I was so anxious waiting for my university entrance exam results. Finally I received a message, but I didn't dare to look at it. I saw that I had a message, but hesitated to read it and the screen locked. I finally gathered the courage to look at the text: not as good as expected, but not too bad, it was the green light to the college I liked.

Xiaodao, Beijing

(China Daily 12/10/2012 page9)