Sunday Proposal…

So, earlier this week I mentioned an idea to Kyle…to start making a point to unplug from our phones on Sundays. Just one day a week.  Don’t get me wrong, cell phones have their perks….avoiding awkward eye contact on an elevator by checking emails, killing time on the bus/subway browsing Facebook, and I’d get nowhere in life (literally) without my phone telling me to turn left in 200 ft (I ❤ GPS)! But it’s just so easy to check in with Facebook or reply to an email, and lose 15 minutes of your day… What a time suck!  

In this day and age of always being connected, I swear all of this modern technology gets in the way of our living!  On a few occasions at Towner’s Woods, I’ve noticed someone pushing their child along in a stroller while being totally checked out and staring at their mobile device (so much so that I actually witnessed a Mom ram her stroller into a tree – not kidding). All I can think is, “Goodness I am …Kyle is so close to becoming that person.  Between texting, social media apps, reading and responding to comments and questions with work/social media/apps, checking email, updating the ical… it’s like, well of course we are glued to this thing 24/7.  Sad but true!

Now for me personally, I confess that my relationship with talking on the phone has changed drastically. My younger self would be beating me up right now for even thinking this, but I hate being available every second of every day. Which basically translates to, I hate talking on the phone. I can’t remember the last time I was on the phone for longer than 20 minutes. Seriously. But 10 years ago I was a telephone junkie; First I’d be on the phone with Ali for 2 hours, then Kristin (another hour), then I’d call Katie (another 45), & of course Kyle (another 2+ hours)…. You get my point.  I don’t know how anyone ever got a call thru to my parents!

Allow me a bit of a tangent here…How did we make it in the olden days with a single, landline home phone for an entire family!?!?!?  Speaking of which, I think we should make an effort to….BRING BACK THE LANDLINE!!! I really miss landlines. Ah, those blissful days. Remember how someone would pick up another phone in the house and totally blow your cover and you’d have to scream, “MOM…I’m on the phone” (like she didn’t hear that when she picked up). Or how someone would call for one of my parents and I’d cover the receiver with my hand and at the top of my lungs scream, “DAD…PHONE’S FOR YOU”. Experiences like this might not have been the most pleasant, but such is childhood. Kids these days (am I really already using that phrase?!?!)…Don’t have to suffer through their parents answering the phone and inquiring about the “booooooooooyyy” calling. Instead, these kids walk around with smartphones and tablets composing, flirty texts and facebook messages for that special someone that they like, (looking and sounding cooler than I ever did at 14). Cell phones are denying kids the proper forum for those painfully awkward “teen” years required to become interesting, well-adjusted adults.

Listen, I’m not endorsing a massive burning of all things electronic. But hopefully, soon, Sundays will become our slower day… away from technology… our day of rest.. It is the Sabbath after all. And whether you’re religious or not, it’s nice to have a little breather. A time to unwind. To gather inspiration out in the world, away from your mobile device. To enjoy the people around you and your surroundings without refreshing any app to see who is eating what for brunch (I mean seriously!).