I seek out moments of Zen multiple times a day. Yesterday I went on my ritual morning walk and took a detour through the woods and spiderwebs. No audiobooks or podcasts, no music or phone calls, just me and the sounds of me in nature. Barefoot, t-shirt, shorts, my watch, some bracelets, glasses, and my phone. I like to bring my phone so that I can photograph things I want to see again. Videos of water moving, animals crawling, beautiful flowers and dew on leafs.
I’ve begun noticing how distracted I get around my phone and laptop in a way that doesn’t provide me joy, just regret. I don’t like feeling regret. Along with this regret, I find myself judging others that are stepped to their digital devices. Scrolling, swiping, etc., this wasn’t what I or we were meant for. So the way I am trying to combat this digital dopamine is by seeking out a moment of personal Zen beyond my current state. Something natural, something organic, something living, something in process.
Quick hit dopamine digital delivery. My phone can be the devil and can be the saint. It serves me thought provoking, arousing, challenging, false, truthful, and distracting content. Choosing what I see is hard because I don’t control the algorithm. So, seek versus scroll? Walk instead of seek? Make as an alternative to walking?
This dopamine cycle reminds me of the Nuggets cartoon where the walking animal eventually gets addicted to the yellow gold. If you haven’t seen it, watch it!
Energy:
- Fall feeling weather
- Friendships, intentional community, and intimacy
- Focus with Helper-ID
Baggage:
- I cannot control others, I know this, yet I still try
- Losing hope in those that I thought were and loving people
- Incomplete decisions and projects (overthinking)
Random thought:
- Book Why we Love, empathy as foundational to love.
- Empathy used for manipulation
Hello, I am Shelton. 