time spent offline

I’m practicing being still, doing nothing. I sit outside. I let the sky, the sun, clouds, trees, birds, sound from cars, and smiling passerby keep me company. It requires no special equipment, no special skill, to be still, to notice. And it’s free and can be done anywhere, anytime; preferably outside. A bird might shit on you, but that’s life. Getting fresh air and a dose of sunlight is worth the risk. I remain still. Quitting social media is the easy part, so is getting rid of your smartphone, planning weekly digital sabbaticals, and going for a walk instead. The hardest part is the time that remains, infinite, and what will you do with all that time? You can fill it right back up with 100 things to do offline, of course. There is no shortage of things you can do offline, depending on your interests, skills, and resources. Not everyone can or wants to go hiking, build a furniture, or plant a garden, but there is something to do for everyone in the offline world. No matter what we choose to do, however, doing things offline requires more effort than scrolling online.

Except for one thing.

There is one thing that is available to all of us, at any time of the day, in any moment without any special skills or gears required: Doing absolutely nothing. There is an art to sitting still but it requires nothing but your willingness to find a bench at a park, sitting still and soaking up the sun, noticing clouds moving around the clear sky, trees swaying to the sounds of the gentle breeze keeping you cool, the sounds of birds chirping, and the overly excited puppy that forces you to crack a smile. If you have time to read this post, I can assume you are not so busy to find time out of your day to experience the delight of doing nothing. Even if you are very busy, you can still find pockets of moments in your days to do nothing; To sit still, for a few moments, and notice reality all around you. You can do it while in traffic, waiting for your drive thru coffee, waiting for a meeting to start. I won’t lie and say it’s easy— Simple, but not easy. A mind used to constant stimulation, chatter, and keeping busy will revolt. It can feel painful, even physically uncomfortable, to sit still and do absolutely nothing, but these feelings only last the first few moments and if you can remain still, surrender to a few seconds or minutes of resistance, you will ease into the joy of doing absolutely nothing. A delight.