I’m baaaaack:)
It’s been just over a week of unpluggedness: no blogging, commenting, emails, Facebook or Twitter. And it was a week of bliss! Let me explain…
You see, I kept it a secret (except for the few who knew our little secret…you know who you are, mwahahahaha) that it was my and my husband’s 33rd wedding anniversary, and we went away to Aruba: the happy little island that is genuinely happy! The weather was divine, the food superb and the people…well, let me just say it was the best customer service experience I’ve ever encountered (Adam Toporek, your Customer Service Series would give this island a two thumbs up, for sure)
What did I learn and what did I get reminded of?
I was reminded that family comes first. After a difficult and challenging 2+ years of groundless TM litigation with one of my companies, during which time my focus was on business (and legal fees, despair and closing that business), I started this blog. My intention was simply to write: to free the self-censored voice I’d kept muffled all that time, pent up with singular anguish and pain. My family, the loves of my life, had supported and seen me through this most difficult time, and I felt like I was now again on solid ground.
At Thanksgiving, my two sons wondered what my husband and I would be doing to celebrate our 33rd anniversary. They said we “deserved” to get away, and encouraged us to book a trip to an exotic and special place. We booked last minute, and I decided this trip would be a true vacation: no phone, no online. (And I credit Margie, Lori, Jayme, Davina and Erica for helping me have the gumption to do so, as they all had written about or experienced offline trepidation and/or reality.)
I was reminded that, no matter how wonderful our online experiences are (and believe me, I treasure each and every friend I’ve met and made online), there is nothing that compares to being “in the moment” and truly present with the people you are with. And it was refreshing to be in a place where to see someone madly texting or typing away on their laptop was the exception, not the norm. The colours were brighter, the sights and sounds clearer, away from the constant bombardment of messages, pings and dings from the computer. I was reminded that there was actually once a time when none of this existed (yes, I know that dates me…so be it:)
Would I want to go back to that time? We don’t have to. We can create the moments and oases in our days that remove us from the compulsion we have to be “on” 24/7. The world will keep on turning. True friends will be there when we return. Business, if we’ve prepared and conducted ourselves accordingly will be there too.
By conducting my “spooky experiment“, I learned that:
It’s healthy to take a break: in your day, in your schedule, in your life.
Your perspective is clearer, your priorities more sharply aligned when you step back from the hamster wheel of always “on”.
You laugh a lot more, smile a lot more and have more patience and tolerance for the minor nuisances in life.
What matters should matter, not just in words, but in actions.
In my previous post, where I announced I’d be going off the grid for a week, Jayme commented: “I think you’re gonna like it a little bit too much”. Erica said “I’ll bet you gain an entirely new perspective on life.” Howie threatened to have people follow me around and read tweets and blogs and FB updates (nanananabooboo…my neighbours didn’t get the message Howie:) Gini called me a “brave, brave woman”, indicating she’s going off the grid at the end of the year for a week, but her blog will continue on, and is worried…what if it’s better without her?
I did like my week away: a lot!
I don’t have a “new” perspective on life, but a clearer one for sure.
Upon arriving home, I found it difficult, even annoying, to see people connected non-stop to their phones and devices. I wanted the “island experience” to continue. (Did you send those people to surround and hound me as soon as my flight touched down Howie?)
And Gini, I don’t know that I was really very brave. Once I made the decision to go off the grid for the week, it was liberating. I didn’t stew over it, worry about it or have, in Betsy’s words, angst about it all “slipping away”. Because if it all slipped away in that period of time, did I really “have it” in the first place?
I have so many experiences and stories to share about this wonderful week away, including:
BACON…oh my gosh, this bacon shot is for all my bacon-loving friends! Ken, Erin, Nancy, Brian and vegetarian-Gini, are you listening?
The night they slipped a piece of paper under our door warning of a “tropical depression” (nice way of saying the s*#t’s about to hit the fan weather-wise…didn’t happen:)
The visit of Queen Beatrix, while we were there.
The great friends we made
The pina coladas, palapas and iguanas
The sunsets…ah, the sunsets…
But that’s for another post. For now, I’m back: refreshed, rejuvenated and with a clearer sense of priority and purpose. Things will continue to evolve and change around here, as I become clearer and clearer about the purpose of this blog. It’s changed since I started. But isn’t that what life is all about? Embracing change, not fearing it. Marching to one’s own drummer. Following your bliss. Being in the moment. Being of service. Loving yourself and all that you do. I wish it all for you, my friends. It’s great to be back, but a little bit of Aruba will stay with me.
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