I was told many many many times that I should share myself through writing, and so here I am, starting my own blog. One has to start somewhere :)) Thank you for being here with me.
And by no accident this first contribution is inspired by the technology that this very blog is using. Younger generations seem to have a very different mind-set when it comes to technology, blogging and vlogging as if it is part of their nature. Myself I can feel often overwhelmed by the amount of it and it makes me feel as if I belong rather to a previous century; which in a way is true.
Don't misunderstand me please. I LOVE technology in its useful way. However it can literally get on my nerves (ask my partner, thanks God I have a psychiatrist at home) when devices and applications keep beeping for constant attention and taking control over us and telling us what to do!
It often reminds me of a nature of human mind which we simply copied into behavior of our tech-companions. Besides the useful service it is flooding us with tons of useless information, notifications, updates, repetitive reminders, well you tell me what more... Like our mind.
Perhaps working through the nowadays technology is like clearing up the files of our mind and our subconscious when we can enjoy its service rather than be under constant attack of repetitive thoughts, out of control emotions and all that stuff that we identify with. We often forget, as with our mind so with our phones, that we have a choice to take distance, switch off notifications and let go of unnecessary automatic background activities.
And I have to ask myself why do we choose to behave more like machines and we are not even aware of it? Unconsciously being slaves to our minds and believes, and in a sort of tech-mirror way, worshiping our devices and applications too. Why are we looking for a fake "fast-food" virtual attention instead of a real life connections? Often it is not nourishing but even more depressing. There could be written miles of books on the cause of our modern virtual addiction, targeting the true reasons why we get rather attached to artificial friend than to a real one. What does it say about our emotional maturity, individual and social?
I got a sweet taste of being phone-less and WiFi-less in a weekend getaway in a forest. No reception for miles, no Wifi to use. A dream! How much I enjoyed the company of my beloved, the nature, a book or simply a bath. With no phone or internet on my mind, and with a no-mind indeed! Like in a Silent retreat or a Vipassana group however this not planned - by surprise - daily life situation cleared my channels in a very sharp integrative way, and opened longing to unplug long term and live without this additional reality, like in old times. And these 'old times' are not even so long ago!!!
One week after this phone-less bliss experience the universe has given me what I was wishing for (careful what we wish for, hehe) and I went through an involuntary experiment and an important observation when my phone broke down and the tablet touch screen went on a "ghost" strike; both of course in the same time (can I blame the Mercury retrograde please?!). Yes, initially I freaked out. I was disconnected from my friends, work, random morning browsing through the net and I disappeared from the world of social media! How upsetting! Initially. But it was a gift indeed. I was ready for that break and after I calmed down I realized how much more time I have for creativity and close by people. It became obvious how the anxiety which raised the reaction about broken devices would feed my old wounds of abandonment and separation. The "breakdown" lasted over two weeks till I got a chance for fixing it. And these two weeks were like a true rehab for me. Pffew. Thank you Thank you Thank you.
I still like the social media and the way we can connect, but now I am using it rather to make appointments to REALLY meet, to make that effort and maybe even travel to enjoy the real human contact. I find on the net inspiration for my creativity and for my healing practice. And for my cooking and gardening. I have a choice to first watch in the morning the birds and flowers in my garden and do my yoga practice before I open my phone or a computer (I did let go of the tablet for now). I have the choice to leave the phone at home when I go out.
And so excuse me please if I don't engage in your posts or if I don't wish you happy birthday through the Facebook, nothing personal. I am probably thinking of you from my garden or on a nature walk. And we can use the phone to talk too! And know that I love you more than it looks like. And I know I am in your heart too.
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Helpful tip that I found: check for yourself which applications are eating your time and your battery, even without using them. There is the delete/ uninstall / mute button to allow fresh start in any given moment.
Thank you for reading, yours Sati