Have you noticed yourself becoming addicted to excessive mental or even spiritual busy-ness, especially in the use of technology? Constantly checking social media pages and groups, or wall-to-wall listening to podcasts or lectures? Meet your sister! All of them may be worthy and valuable in themselves. But when is enough enough?
One of the most important influences in my life was my grandmother Tessie. Her nephew was a priest stationed in a Dublin college. For many years he would invite the extended family to Mass on Christmas morning. One year after Mass, Tessie must have cornered him to get advice (probably concerning her grandchildren, maybe me!). Another family member protested to her, “Tessie, don’t be talking business on Christmas Day.” She smiled innocently, fluttered her eyelashes and replied “It’s holy business.”
Holy Business or Un-whole-y Busy-ness?
This story keeps coming into my mind recently. I’ve been doing some kind of meditation or spiritual practice for half a century. Yet recently I’ve had to acknowledge that I spend very little time nowadays in actual silence, meditation or contemplation. Granted, I listen to some brilliant spiritual talks and lectures on my walks, or while cooking or gardening. There’s hardly room on my shelves for all the wonderful books I dip into.
Definitely qualifies as holy business. But at what point can even holy business become avoidance of inner connection? At what point does even the “holiest” of business morph into un-whole-y busy-ness?
A mind full of lofty concepts is still a mind full of ideas. Nothing wrong with that if there is balance. But I’ve realized over the last few months that I have gone way out of balance, with the imbalance weighted very much in favor of busy-ness (of the holiest kind of course!). And less and less inner quiet.
Leaving the busy-ness behind
I’ve started to challenge myself to be away from devices for at least some time every day. Going out for a walk and leaving my phone at home can feel like going out without one of my hands. There’s anxiety about missing an important message (and, honestly, how many messages or phone calls can’t wait an hour?)
Or I drive to a park and leave the phone in the car (again having checked it a few times, just in case!). I have a walk, get a coffee and sit somewhere beautiful, but still feel something’s missing. One day when I got back to the car I noticed that I was grabbing the phone like I’ve been deprived of some kind of oxygen.
Even leaving the house without the phone often finds me checking it several times before actually opening the door! After all, I might miss something.
Mental busy-ness
The main challenge is what I think of as mental busy-ness. Physical activity can be calming and grounding. And it’s fine to combine the two i.e. listen to a talk while gardening. But not all the time! Even as I write this, the thought of switching off for a few hours later today is triggering withdrawal symptoms!
Giving up the drug of busy-ness
It’s not about blaming the technology. I am often astounded at the brilliance of those who have developed the technology that allows us to do so many things that were unimaginable to any of us now in our Third Age. I think it was in the 1980s that we began to hear that some day we would be able not just to talk to someone on the phone, but see them. That sounded like science fiction. At that time, phone calls were expensive. Now we can have free face to face conversations with people anywhere in the world. Not to mention all the other things we can do (including writing blog posts!).
The technology isn’t the bad guy here. Used well, it can be very much a good guy. But my recent, sometimes reluctant, efforts to be device-free for several hours a day have been a revelation to me. It’s taking more discipline than I would have anticipated to wean myself off what is, if I’m honest, becoming a drug. And, as Anthony de Mello said in another context , “giving up the drug can be tough.”
Inner Self is calling. It doesn’t use a phone or device! But how can it access a constantly distracted mind, even if that mind is distracted by lofty, inspiring ideas?
Does this ring a bell for you?
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