I’m up in Cincinnati this week picking up Toes to bring her back down to Georgia to enjoy the spring sunshine. Toes’s ability to laze in the sun is something I envy about her. That and her tail.
At times I look to Toes as a kind of spiritual teacher. The simplicity of her everyday activities–sleeping, eating, walking around the backyard, etc.–captivate me. I want to be like Toes. Just living.
One of the major barriers for me to living the Toes life is being active on social media. Those moments I might drink in the sunshine in the backyard are accompanied by an irresistible urge to see what everyone’s up to. As I scroll through my feed, I try my best to be happy for my friends and their cool lives, but I often find myself like a kite yanked upon by the winds of FOMO and think maybe I should…
FILL IN THE BLANK with the solution to my life’s problems.
Problems I’ve likely only been made aware of through comparison or through a thousand sponsored ads looking to fill my needs. Some of those needs are spot on. I do need sports bras that offer superior support and athletic shorts that don’t ride up. Others, like real estate in the West End of Atlanta, are just a distraction.
I want out of the whirlwind, and yesterday I spotted a way. A friend posted about taking time off of social media for Lent which brought to mind the Lenten victories of my youth. I’d set myself up with big challenges–giving up chocolate chip cookies and Saved by the Bell–and knock them out of the park. I crushed Lent as a kid.
And now, even though I haven’t given up anything for Lent for years, I’m going to give it a go and try to give up Facebook and Instagram from Ash Wednesday through Easter.
I’ll still be posting on my website. My hope is this will provide time to write more.
And I’ll also be enjoying my time with Toes out in the backyard–a spiritual teacher and her disciple just living our simple lives.
Sarah Zureick-Brown 