Spend a weekend with the television off, the internet down, both cell and land phones turned off.
CHANGE: Initial Reaction
At first it will be strange. There is a silence that settles over the environment that is very different from the noise most people live with daily. For example, it is very easy to get used to turning on the television and letting it play while one goes about other things. The television becomes a white noise in the background that is to some extent comforting.
Once, however, the noise is turned off, the silence becomes a noise in itself. One begins to notice the sounds that exist outside the window, one can hear another speak in a lower tone, one can feel a certain rhythm that exists in living.
WITHOUT: Living
Living without the internet, phone and television can leave one a little out of touch with society, but for a limited time this does no damage and can be very good for psychic health. A person can find him or herself speaking more to family members, actually playing attentively with children or really immersing him or herself in a good book. One becomes aware of one’s movements because those movements create noise in the silence. It becomes possible to be more conscious of one’s body and one’s place in the world.
CHANGE: Advantages
After only a short time, the silence can become very powerful. One begins to move more slowly, one begins to walk through the world in a less hurried manner. In such an environment, the desire to create, to learn, to relax, can be nurtured. The folks one lives with become very important, the silence becomes an opportunity to think and meditate on the things that one really wants.
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