Every Friday, a group of us ladies spends 5 minutes writing on a new topic. Created by Lisa Jo Baker, this fun little exercise helps us write freely without worrying about imperfections or format. I love it! To join, check out the weekly prompt here. [Confession — this took me way more than 5 minutes, whoopsie! But I hope you enjoy.]

One of the challenges in today’s culture is staying present — not checking out to ‘check in’ on social media, respond to texts in real-time, or get rid of those pesky red bubble notifications! 🙂

Many of us miss the days when no one but best friends and family knew where we were on a Friday night, what we ate for breakfast, or our deepest political and social views. Baby announcements were sent via snail mail, and emails were called ‘memos’.

Now we can work virtually from anywhere, Skype or FaceTime with our fam from another coast, and GoPro our latest ski trip for our YouTube friends to see — but these (rather awesome) tech inventions decrease one major thing in our lives: Our ability to be present.

I’m thankful I grew up in the ’80s before the internet craze hit. I remember simpler days, simpler conversations, and people getting to know each other the old fashioned way (face-to-face) — in short, true connection. Couples met at church, at bars, at school, through friends & family — anything but Tinder and Eharmony. Never would a phone interrupt our dates, we made small talk in line instead of checking new messages, and we even had to ask people for directions (and many other life questions) instead of Google! Most thankfully, we’d never experienced the new rude: Seeing the backs of phones in mid-sentence in lieu of faces or living room groups of silent iPad and smartphone users. Aye. I’m just as guilty at times! But it still saddens me.

How do we go back to the pre-tech era? I wish we could, but we can learn to coexist with these little tech tyrants without losing our present-ness. We must put our phones down, set limitations — like “Phone Free Zones” — when with family, friends, spouses (and even alone!), and consider turning our phones OFF for periods of time instead of being leashed to them 24/7. Our parents survived without them all those years, so it’s possible we may just be able to, too.

We can learn to let go, enjoy this minute, and be present. Not every moment needs to be Instagrammed, I’ve learned. In fact many of my favorites are spontaneous and hidden from the eyes of others, just between me and my husband or friends. It’s better to keep some moments private and just soak in a sunset rather than snapping 10 less-than-stellar photos (they never turn out quite the same anyway).

Some things are best captured with our own eyes, felt with our own hands, and tastier when eaten right away instead of filtered to perfection 😉 Experiencing life through our senses, not our lenses, may be a great place to start living each moment more fully. #nofilter

Start by asking the Lord —

How can I stay more present in my life? In what ways am I checking out and missing Your daily gifts? Show me a better way. IJN, amen ♥

xoxo,
Summer

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