Make a Splash

Summer hasn't really ended for us, not in a meteorological sense, and it won't end until October.  But in terms of schedules, summer is definitely over.  Three quarters of our family have returned to schooling of some kind and that means the internet has made a come-back into our home.  As much as I wished it could stay gone forever, I knew it would be a short-lived but much needed sabbatical.  So, how did our little experiment turn out?

Well, I made a couple of observations.  One is that when robbed of the addictive time suck known as the internet, my children become more creative and their parents become more productive, because there are no distractions and no excuses.  Without the internet we're either just sitting there staring at nothing or we get up and do something.  I'd rather do something.

The other observation I've made is this:  the internet is fueled by outrage and I want a peaceful life.  If I want my time to pass more slowly, if I want my time to pass more peacefully, I have to unplug.  I hate it when my day ends and I think, where did the time go?  That never happens when I don't have a screen on.  Instead I fall exhausted into bed feeling a great sense of accomplishment at all the tasks I've either started or completed.  And when my screens are off I don't lay awake worrying or raging over things I've seen but cannot control.  All I know about is that which directly affects me and sometimes that's enough.

It's funny, but every time I tell someone that I don't have the internet in my house they react one of two ways: "Good for you!" or "You can't do that!"  Either way I seem to make a splash with my simple news.  That's not my intention, but if opens someone's eyes or at least makes them think a moment, then I'm more than happy to make ripples in the water.