Trailtalk’s Lead Trailblazer Unplugs
Allison needs to Unplug
I’m checking a text on my IPhone, looking at measurement outcomes on a mini IPad, scheduling appointments on a Macbook Air, and learning how to use a Surface drawing thingamajig all at the same time. And, when the internet goes down, which it frequently does, I revert back to the easiest method of all, pen and paper. My business is dependent on technology. At the same time, I get enslaved and slowed down with the same technology that’s supposed to improve my efficiency. Like most everything else, too much of a good thing is not so good.
So I’m unplugging most of my devices on May 14th. I won’t be checking email. I won’t be texting. I won’t access social media. I will be listening to music, taking photos, and doing a few videos while on the El Camino. I am bringing my IPhone. Many seasoned El Camino Pilgrims suggest leaving your phone at home. That’s a hard one for me.
Could I be addicted? Ya, I am addicted to my phone, and to a few other things I’m sure will identify themselves along The Way. That’s the inner journey part of this 35 day walk across Spain. I’m going to face my addictions to material things when my back is screaming, ” get rid of some f#%&%ing weight Allison.”
The weight I need to rid myself of is both physical and emotional. I, like many of you reading this right now, carry excess baggage. Shedding baggage is a personal process, and each one of us has our own unique time frame to make it happen. Sometimes we don’t dare drop our excess because we don’t know how to do life any other way. There’s often a secondary gain (read more here) trying to do another person’s journey for them.
I am an Emotional Sherpa® myself. “Is that so?” :-). Tell me a nurse who isn’t. Well, I take that back. Nurse Ratched is a devil in a nurse’s uniform. I’ve digressed. Another problem I have. Yikes! Back to unplugging.
I’ve unplugged for a week every year for the last 5 years. I mean really unplugged. No phone, no email, nothing but being in the present moment. No parallel play going on ever. Thirty five days is another story. So, I’m bringing my phone. I plan to blog along the way. If you don’t hear from me, it’s probably because I’m facing my addiction, or lost it (hopefully my phone, not my mind).
The Tip from the Trail today is: Consider the baggage you need or want to shed. Awareness is the first step of making it happen.
Happy trails to you and yours, Allison
