Ray Leach
During a recent summer break, I found myself victim to the ever-common issue of phone pickpocketing. Being without my device for a week led me to find the peace of mind I didn’t know I needed. My mind settled and I learned to sit in silence more comfortably, leading me to become a happier, less connected person. Ignoring the Internet came as a peaceful blessing, though it must be said that I was in the tranquil setting of the south west of France, which did also help.
The big three
Three main temptations arose during this week. The first came from wanting to record videos or take pictures, so I used my camera. Second was checking the time, for which I had a watch. Third was texting friends, which I was able to do using my laptop occasionally in the evenings. Over the next few days, it occurred to me that I missed nothing else about my phone. Where did all those hours of screen time go? I spent the ‘in-between’ moments of my day in comfortable, peaceful silence. Staring up at the swallows that danced in the sky every day after the sun dropped, or quietly reading my book somewhere in the garden.
I wondered whether I could retreat to a brick phone, a fax machine or perhaps a carrier pigeon. But in all seriousness, I was considering how far I really could take all this off-grid business.
Our current normal
Back at home (when life was bleak and full of blue light), I would play podcasts almost constantly throughout my day. Even at the time, I knew this was a distraction method to avoid any overthinking. However, it occurred to me that this was counterproductive to the actual solving of any unresolved issues I was (or wasn’t) coping with. There are certain habits that I’m sure I will recoil back to, such as listening to the occasional podcast or watching TV in the evenings. But in terms of scrolling, I feel alleviated from a chore to which I was (for some reason) bound.
Power and control
One question still remains. Why did it take for the problem to be stolen from my hands for me to make a change? Perhaps that is a personal problem with addiction that I need to grapple with – or are we all conditioned to think less and consume more? It does stir a deeper concern about the control that our devices (and those designing their addictive characteristics) have over us. We are all aware that it is hard to operate in this day and age while disconnected, but this week has proven to me that it’s not impossible.
Finding a happy medium
Reality will surely hit on Monday when I will need my phone to make bookings, phone calls and various other work requirements. I intend to use my phone mainly for work as I step back into the reality of the workforce after a blissful two weeks off. But as I sit here in the airport waiting to board a 1.5-hour flight followed by a 45-minute train, I do see a lot of faces looking down at their screens. I wonder what interactions are being missed. What opportunities to connect are avoided due to the obsession with being connected online?
On the other hand, my lack of screen time allowed me to witness beautiful human interactions that would have otherwise gone unnoticed if my headphones were blocking out the world around me.
Final takeaways
Although cliché to be without a phone for only one week and walk away with a sense of ‘isn’t life beautiful?’, it is unavoidable in this instance. I have rediscovered my love of reading before bed and the desire to write various forms of prose has become stronger than ever. If it weren’t for that beach pickpocket I would be the same avoidant zoomer I was just one week ago.
