Disengaging from that Device

​    At this moment, everyone reading this is doing so on a digital device. These devices have enhanced our world, no doubt. They have provided us with the ability to connect with people across the globe. They offer us ways to share special moments and memories (Okay, for me it is mostly random thoughts, but still…). There is a great deal that phones, tablets, and computers do, but there is definitely one major thing they all can claim- time wasting.


If you are like me, I pull out my phone whenever there is a five second lull in conversation or a two minute break from whatever task is at hand. I stop to check social media more times than necessary in a day. It is this time that I suggest changing. Now is the chance to put down that device sitting in your hand or your lap, and grab a book. This previously wasted time is going to be put to good use by you. You will grab that book you have been meaning to read for months, or that pen and paper meant for jotting down thoughts and ideas for that novel you meant to write but never got around to. The time spent wasted on social media can have better uses, and reading or writing a book are two of the best ways.


Books draw you into a world that is unlike your own, but with characters and emotions that match what you feel. Books bring understanding of topics and of feelings that once felt unsolvable. Writing can attend to these matters as well. Putting pen to paper carries thoughts that needed to be released or emotions that have overwhelmed your personality. Writing is a freeing act.
The ability of the written word to express one’s personal emotions, but also encompass a mass of people’s similar emotions is unmatched. The written word could be meant as a personal release, but engage other’s thoughts and feelings to help them move past whatever walls they were blocked by. Reading words transports one far away from where he or she sits or stands, while teaching about truth and life in the process.

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The time spent reading or writing will be time well spent. It will teach and engage you more than any social media site ever could. This is not only a challenge to you, my readers, but also to myself: to step away from my devices and read and write more often. Now, it is not necessary to completely abstain from any social media or using your device at all. What makes this task easier is taking it one step at a time. If you notice you are spending too much time staring at a screen, set it down, and go grab a book or pen and paper. After a few times of taking action, it will become easier to identify when you are spending too much time using your device. So set your phone down, leave it in another room, place it screen side down; I promise you it will be well worth it.