I have long since forgotten what first gave me the idea to make the beach week a tech-free week for me. I knew that I had become too dependent and frequently found myself bemoaning lost time spent on the internet or an iPad game. I figure that a black-and-white fast would be the way to go. Although, as the “ish” of the title indicates, the fast turned out to be a little grey. I learned quite a lot from the week.

Initially, I decided to bring just my watch to the beach to track my runs and steps, no phone, no tablet, no computer. I then realized that for safety purposes I needed to bring my phone with me as I ran. Then I remembered that one of my books for my econ class I purchased as a kindle book which meant that I had to bring my iPad. The only technology I ended up not bringing was my computer. That being said, I set specific purposes for each device as mentioned above.

At first, I kept reaching for technology – kept longing for old, usual habits. As time has passed since the beginning of the week, I find it difficult to remember specific examples of these longings. Instead, a vague memory of wanting to pick up my phone and mindlessly scroll is all I have. I had to consciously tell myself that I did not need to constantly listen to podcasts or search up random facts or check my email. After the first couple days, these urges decreased, much to my surprise. With as much as I used technology before, I thought I would struggle every day. Once or twice, later on in the week, I forgot to check myself before I started to look for something online, like looking on airbnb for a potential retreat place on Hilton Head for next summer.

Apart from the struggles, few that they were, I found the week freeing. I found that I can sit and work on something without bombarding myself with sound via podcasts or tv or something else. I stood on the beach a few times and simply stopped. I stood still and closed my eyes, listening to the waves pound the shore. On the last day I chose to get up and watch the sunrise, without a camera. Instead, I opened my eyes and took it all in.

I also learned that taking technology out did not solve everything. It took me a couple days to realize what I had let slip into the place formerly occupied by technology. I brought all my coloring books and rediscovered a geography coloring book from my MAT days. I started coloring and soon decided that I needed to get as close to finishing the whole book as I could by the end of the week. When I realized what I was doing, Thursday by the way, I immediately decided to pack away all of the books and my pencils and stop focusing on getting things done.

Going forward, I want to put into practice two main things I learned from this experience. One, I want to be more present in what I do. Instead of getting caught up in something, either to get to a certain goal or just to waste time, I want to be aware of what I’m doing and why I’m doing it. The second thing intertwines with the first. I tend to be a goal setter. Once I set a goal, I usually succumb to the goal, making that paramount in my life. When a goal takes first place, other things get knocked out of the way, specifically my relationship with God. I want to put into practice an attitude and posture that puts God first and goals – and everything else – last.