My Life With Electronics

I think it is fair for me to say that I have a love/hate relationship with electronics. I also think it is fair to say that I have an addiction to electronics.

I understand very clearly that technology and electronics go hand in hand. I also understand that technology and electronics are not only the way of the future, but are already the way of life right now. Everyone is plugged in and glue in.

We no longer write letters. We email. (Unless you are my mother, God love her, who puts us all to shame with her amazing letter writing thoughtfulness.)

We no longer call people on the phone. We text or email.  (I am totally guilty of this as I really hate talking on the phone with 99% of the population.)

We do not visit with one another. We Facetime.

We Snapchat, Instagram, Tweet, and use various other platforms to communicate with one another.

We expect a response from people within minutes of texting, sending email, posting a message on Facebook, etc.., and when we don't get a response or a reaction we wonder if there is something wrong or if someone is mad at us.

This is the world we live in, and I know I am not touching even the tip of the technological iceberg.

Oh, and I haven't even gotten to TV or video games yet.

We watch mindless TV to relax and tune out.

Our kids play hours of video games. Talking to virtual strangers about strategy of the game. Our children (a lot of them) play more  hours of video games than they do any other waking activity. These games are becoming more and more realistic shooting the "enemy", competing against an unseen opponent in a sporting game, or any other variety of activities.

A lot of our kids have short attention spans as they sit for hours watching TV with flashing images popping up in their shows and in the commercials repeatedly.

As mom and dads we use electronics to placate our kids or occupy them so we can just get a "moment alone".  Never realizing that the 1000 times we have checked our phones throughout the day were actually a 1000 moments when we were alone. How many times have you been on your phone and your child was calling your name over and over again and you didn't even realize it because you were lost on Facebook, or yahoo!, or some other random site? Yeah, me too.

I am guilty of all of those things. All of them.

And it makes me sick to my stomach. I have tried countless times to control my electronic exposure, but I struggle time and time again. There seems to be some invisible pull that brings me back time and time again.

I know that  technology, and with it, electronics are the now and the future. I know this. And I realize that I have to accept that this is the way that the majority of the human population is choosing to take the human race. But what if I don't like it? What options do I have?

It's not that I shun all technology. I don't. There is technology out there like Khan academy that was the basis for Andy to begin his programming ventures. There is technology that Sarah uses like Voice Over that allow her to have some access the luxuries that we the sighted have.

But I also think there is so much fluff out there that we, that I, get distracted by. When we can no longer have conversations with our children or our children's friends without them checking their phones or being lost in video game/TV land there is something wrong with that. And there is something wrong with the fact that so many of us, myself included, cannot seem to stop this cycle of inattentive addiction. When we as adults cannot pull ourselves away from Facebook there is something wrong with that.

It makes me feel icky inside. (And I know that is such a lame term, but it is accurate. I literally feel gross in my belly when I have spent too much time being plugged in.) Being plugged in all of the time makes me depressed. It is such an addiction for our family, but mostly for me. I know this because when I make the conscious effort to stop it is almost painful for a day or two to pull away from electronics. I constantly yearn to be checking this or that. My creative juices are tapped out. BUT when I am committed to stepping away from electronics I find my creative juices returning and my need/want to be plugged in wanes. I find that I can live a life without checking Facebook a gazillion times a day. In fact, I can actually live a life without Facebook at all.  And that is a very freeing feeling to me.

I guess what I am trying to say is that I feel like I am at a crossroad. Electronics are taking up too much our family's life. Electronics are affecting our quality of life, and I don't like it, but I also feel like there are vital components to electronics that are more necessary for us to use than not.

  I like having access to Facebook because it allows me to check in on those that I love and see how they are doing. Being an adventurer and a nomadic family means that I have the privilege of meeting all of sorts of people from all over the country. Wanting to stay in touch with those people as we wander from place to place makes Facebook  the perfect avenue for doing so. And I like blogging too. I will never be a superstar at it, but I like writing down my thoughts and feelings because I know that there are others of you out there who feel the same way, but maybe feel like you are alone in your thoughts/feelings. And I like blogging for much of the same reasons that I like Facebook - it allows me to share our family's adventures with all of you. It is the best way that I know to take you with me where ever we go.

But I don't like checking Facebook 1000 times a day. And I don't like spending too much time getting lost in others blogs so that I lose sight of my own life and my own day. (I do love reading some blogs though I just have a tendency to go overboard.)

So, what I am to do?

I have been looking into giving up my smartphone and purchasing a flip phone. This will help me to stop using my phone as an escape throughout my day. And that in itself is a start.

I have also been thinking about setting a timer and only being allowed to blog, check email, check Facebook, etc...during that time period and then holding fast to that time frame.

I am trying to think of other ways too to curb my addiction.

And here's the thing. The electronic usage in our family starts with me. If I quit using electronics so much I can spend more time being in the moment with my kids. I can plan more things, play more games, read more books, do crafts, anything really. This in turn will pull them away from the desire to be on electronics so much. Which, although painful at first, will help us all in the end.

I want my kids to grow up knowing that technology is very useful, but that it has a specific place in our lives. That it should not BE our lives. Maybe this thought process is archaic and outdated. So be it. This is what feels right to me. This is what feels most authentic to me, and I must not be afraid of how loony our family appears to be if we cut down on electronics. I must not be afraid that if I give up my smartphone that I am not going to be in the know right this second on everything that is happening in the lives of those I am intertwined with.

I need to show myself and my family that taking a step back and just breathing is one of the best gifts we can give each other this Christmas season. And then I need to take that gift and move it forward, so that it isn't just a concept that gets thrown away once the newness of it wears off. I need to make it become the gift that keeps on giving because it will do so if I can pull it off.

But it has to start with me. And that frightens me, but I know that I am brave. And I know that I can do hard things. I want to live a life that is fully mine and authentic. Pulling the plug on my electronic addition is one of the best and most fruitful ways I can think of living the life I so desperately want to live.  I want to live with intention. Ever moment of every day. That is my goal.