September was spent in semi-isolation and the quietness grew on me. Solitude decelerates time, which in turn gives sufficient pause to call myself out on things like how I tend to use internet or T.V as distractions (opposed to an activity that enriches or decompresses). It appears it is hard for me to turn things off so even though I intend to use T.V or internet for a brief, refreshing unwind, I usually fall into the black-holeness of it all and emerge hours later, wired and stressed that I neglected to do other things I wanted to do.
Today I returned to Facebook after a 5 week break and even though the benefits are plentiful, my lack of self control made me feel like I was losing myself so I fled into the arms of my journal. The comfort and control of writing on paper balanced out my high-wired Facebook day and I started reflecting on the past 4 wee
ks, wrote goals for this new month and realized how this simple act offers perspective and second chances. Daily journal writing is one thing, but a monthly written “check-up” is another. And so I will try to experiment with this idea by writing a monthly report to myself on good old fashioned paper.
My central goal for October is for ME to not use the internet or watch T.V when my children are at home/awake unless these technologies are being used as an activity, together as a family. Together as a family… the quality of this along with my long conversations with myself and the universe made my September remarkable. Today my husband and I took our younger two on a bicycle ride and then played in a park for awhile, we had dinner as a family, the guys all have a Sunday night ritual of watching a particular show so they bonded over that, I have been reading the kids a book that they love so their day ended with storytelling that had them rolling around in laughter. ..yet, truth be told, I was fighting my need to look at my cellphone throughout the day. The contrast in how I felt about the quality time with family and the feeling that I was addicted to the internet was strikingly apparent. So in the spirit of a new month and the feeling of another new start, I am going to try to slay this dragon and find a way to enjoy Facebook and the companionship it brings but not let it interrupt the time I spend with myself and my family. This girl is going to have her technology and her intentional life too! How does it get even better than that!