Take A Break!
Numerous news and consumer programmes on radio and TV have recently discussed the over-use of mobile phones, and in particular, the impact mobile ownership has on children and teenagers. Schools have banned their use since the first decade of this century, but have been overwhelmed by the impossibility of preventing pupils “needing to keep in touch with my mum”, or more frequently, the parents needing to know where their child is. The words phone addiction occur often in these programmes, and of late I have found myself looking at my phone far more often than is strictly needed. This also applies to my partner, who tends to use the iPad more than I do, although his phone is always close to hand.
During a recent visit from one of our many grandchildren I was struck by how infrequently she looked at her phone! She is in her early twenties and currently completing a Master’s degree, has a close network of friends and a large extended family. How is it, I wondered, that she is not constantly checking her mobile device to find out what the latest news is, both social and global? I haven’t found an answer to this question, but I considered then the tendency I have to check my phone more frequently than I should, and I decided that it would be interesting to see how my other half and I would fare if we set the phones aside for a day.
We designated the next Sunday as our Digital Detox Day, and alerted family members to the need to phone our landline in case of emergency, also reminding them what the number is, as we weren’t sure how many of the younger ones would be aware that we do have an alternative number. At bedtime on Saturday, we duly switched our phones off and I left mine on my bedside table. In the morning, the second phone accompanied us to Northampton and back – in case the car broke down, apparently.
My other half was volunteering at an event in the afternoon. As he left the house, no need for the oft-repeated “Text me when you’re coming home”. What purpose would sending such a message serve? Surely it is just a variation of “I’m on the train”?
While he was out, I spent time mending clothes whilst listening to a gardening programme on the radio, then read a book. If I’d had my phone in my pocket, no doubt I would have interrupted the mending from time to time, to see if any of the young (or my spouse) had been in touch. And once a job has been interrupted it is too easy to wander away, put the kettle on, decide to water the houseplants, or whatever other distraction comes to hand.
In the evening, after we had eaten and cleared away our meal, he played the piano, took up his pen and wrote for a while, then we sat and read our books, looking up occasionally to share an interesting idea or read a passage to each other, before retiring relatively early to bed, where we both read some more before falling asleep.
The following day we discussed thoughts and impressions about our screen-free day, and which parts of digital technology we had missed.
We had both felt a sense of release, possibly even relief. There was no need to check emails or texts. Anything that happened would simply wait till the following day for a response. What had we missed? We agreed we’d missed solving the online crossword puzzle, something of a ritual for us over our mid-day meal. My partner had also missed the wider coverage of news afforded by access to an online newspaper and the BBC online news. I had had an overview of the news via the radio, so had not felt too deprived in that area. He had missed being able to ask Google to play whatever type of music his mood demanded as our access to music is provided by a digital player. We both agree that a screen-free day gave us the opportunity to step back and do things the old-fashioned way – almost as though we had been given permission to do things we’d always enjoyed before the rise of technology: reading, talking, or just sitting and thinking, being at the forefront of those things.
Will Screen-free Sunday become part of our lives from now on? We intend to give it a good go. It has made us think more carefully about what is important about modern technology and what is essentially, totally irrelevant. What can we do without, and what is an effective tool in one’s everyday life? No more looking at angry social media rants about poor parking or whose dog has fouled the pavement again, but we wouldn’t be without the NHS app or online banking tools!
In answer to the five messages from family members, “How did it go?” my answer is a firm “Very well indeed”.