A young friend of mine was glued to her phone for more than an hour.
I suggested that she take a break from her phone and do something else.
She nodded, then walked around for a bit and then got back to her phone, once again starting to text furiously.
It was almost as if there was a stern master waiting for her inside her phone, commanding her every move. To unlock her phone, keep scrolling endlessly, rapidly switch from one unfinished task to another, and keep texting for hours together.
It seemed to me that she felt powerless against this master.
—–
Our home in Bangalore is blessed with amazing gifts:
1. Quitetude: We’re far away from the hustle and bustle of Bangalore traffic. So, there’s a quietness at our home that sustains throughout the day.
2. Lush greenery: The sight of a forest that welcomes us every time we open our balcony window is a sight to behold.
3. Amazing weather: It’s almost always cool and salubrious at our home.
——
As mentioned above, my first attempt at asking my young friend to take a break from her phone wasn’t successful.
So, I tried again.
“Go out to our balcony for 5 minutes. Close your eyes. Feel the cool breeze on your face. Take a few deep breaths. Smile if you can. Take a few more deep breaths. Listen to the birds chirping. Hear the rustle of the leaves.”
“And whenever you feel ready, gently open your eyes. Behold the forest in front of you.”
“Then think about your goals. Get a notebook and a pen. Leave the phone away, you need to do this as a physical writing exercise. Write down how you’d feel when you’ve achieved your goals. Actually feel the emotion of success. And a feeling of gratitude for the success that life has sent your way.”
She nodded and went out into the balcony.
——
She came back 10 minutes later.
“How do you feel?” I asked
“Cathartic” she responded
I nodded – trying to hide the fact that I didn’t know what that meant :).
And then when she was gone, I quickly Googled it:
Cathartic (definition): “providing psychological relief through the open expression of strong emotions”
Yeah, that’s what I thought it meant too.
——
If 10 minutes away from our devices can make us feel so much better, why do we let ourselves get willingly imprisoned by these small screens?
We have more power than we choose to credit ourselves for.
All we need to do is to take the first step with a deep breath. Simply turn it off and step out for a few minutes without it.
And be with yourself instead.