A LIFESTYLE BLOG – JUST FOR FUN
It was a dawning realization: my state of disconnection. I went out of the house on an errand run this morning. I got into the driver’s seat of “my” Camry, then proceeded to adjust the seat and the mirrors and the radio station; after all, three drivers share this car. I turned on the AC and while the car cooled down, I inwardly rehearsed my intended route: first, the dollar store, then the credit union, then Barnes & Noble and finally a quick stop at the local grocery store.

I spent the first hour at the dollar store. And I had a great time finding certain necessary items: toothbrushes, batteries, foam-core boards, Kleenex, hangers, a calculator, a glue stick and a package of sheet protectors. I also purchased some not-so-necessary items: wall decals, gift wrap ribbon, a dvd, a couple of children’s books and a pack of playing cards (old maid). It was a lovely, relaxing time of browsing and shopping. I shopped in air-conditioned comfort. And I had not received any calls or text messages from my two teenaged daughters, or my husband, or my friends, or any telemarketers. I juggled my purchases out to my car; our dollar store doesn’t provide carts. And eight boxes of Kleenex plus my other purchases proved to be quite bulky.

Then, back into the car and off to the credit union. But what I really wanted was to go the bookstore. There were a few specific titles I wanted to purchase and…I had a gift card! My gift card was safely tucked into my phone case. So I was all set. And that is when my thoughts were jarred: where was my phone case? Where was my phone? My phone case (and my phone) were at home plugged into the charger. That is when I knew the truth: no one had called me because no one was able to call me. I was officially disconnected. I was totally free!

At first, I breathed a big sigh of relief and wonder; I really was out alone without even a possibility of an electronic interruption! Wheee! I felt elated, happy, at peace. Then I felt…disconnected. How will people get in touch with me? How will I keep in contact with the family? They don’t know where I am. A little worried guilt crept in at this point. I really should let them know where I am. Then…”This is ridiculous! Nobody needs to know were I am right this second!” Good grief! Connection has become such a way of life that now, without a phone, I feel non-functional and desolate: no technology, untethered, alone. But then I toggled back into happy mode and the joy of it all, of being unconnected, returned. Alone? He, he, he…yes! Isn’t it delicious?

As I discovered the delight of my aloneness, I continued on to the credit union where I made a further observation. I sat down in the waiting area; every person seated around me, whether they were conversing with others, supervising children or sitting in silence, had a phone in their hand and were engaged in clicking, scrolling, gazing or in some other way relating to their world through their little electronic device. I would have been also. But I didn’t have my phone with me.

I knew that waiting would be an unfamiliar challenge without my phone. And my mind became a bit frantic as I thought, “what am I going to do while I wait?” It was an involuntary, passing panic. And since it wasn’t a truly threatening situation, I sat down and adjusted to this “new” experience. It felt…weird…and unique…and wonderful!

Wow! There is life beyond the screen: just normal, everyday, common-doings life: people passing by, a grandma engaging a young girl in play, two older friends chatting, a man in a workday uniform, a small toddler in bright orange shorts. There is life beyond the screen: with time to think, and to reflect, and to mull things over without being connected or productive at all. What a discovery: life beyond the screen! And life is wonderful!