Stoop Thoughts

I sat down on my front porch steps and as I gazed at the herculean clouds billowing past I thought, "Why don't we disconnect more like this?"

As I watched these clouds and a few black specks that my non-corrected eyes made out to be birds that swept in and around the wisps of wind pushing these large clouds forward you would think this moment- full of life and hopeful meaning would capture my attention, but you would be wrong (sorry!). My gaze started to shift from this beautiful, peaceful, and divinely purposeful moment to my phone. This small simple electronic device to which so much of my life is constantly tethered.

I thought back to an article I read one time at a trip to Barnes & Noble with Tyler about boredom and how it rejuvenates and builds the pathways of our mind. And yet... our society has taught us to not be bored- to fill our every moment with some sort of entertainment or expression. In attempt to stay away from these two categories which stave off boredom, I bound them together in a folder titled "free time" thinking this would make me realize the choice I was making to surf facebook over doing something to be or to invest. So here I was torn between the eternal and the temporary.

What brought me to this moment on my stoop, sitting on the edge of nature but drawn to my phone? Well, I hate to be alone. My house felt stuffy. I hadn't been outside all day save for my walk to the car and to and from work. I have too much to do and had no energy with which to do it. It also seemed a great place to sit and eat some dinner. But really, how often I am drawn to this place of choice between a temporary filling and a long term filling. Often, I fall for the temporary and forget the things that make life so full. So what it is it? What are the things that make you so full and how can you live your life in a way to choose the divine/good more than the temporary connection?

Prayer is the only way I've found so far and I've just begun. Fill yourself with goodness, one choice at a time.