Life Lessons from a Printer: Do You Need to Unplug to Reset Yourself?
To stay emotionally health, modulate and set limits on your intake of the news and balance it with positive things like nature and meaningful connections with loved ones.
Dear Friends,
Staying sane in an insane world is challenging! But it is something you can do successfully if you follow some simple guidelines. One is to unplug from the news regularly and balance current events with positive input. Look at the sky. Listen to the sounds of birds. Savor your meal and enter fully into the present moment.
You can also take a cue from my recent printer experience which I share with you below. Which of your electronic devices can you unplug from on a regular basis? Exercise your agency. Even if it feels counter-intuitive, rest your mind and unplug. Sometimes, unplugging is what is needed to recharge.
To your health!
SD Shanti
Earlier this morning, my printer mysteriously stopped working. I tried checking the cables and checking the software settings on my laptop. I could not understand why it had printed the night before but was not printing less than twelve hours later.
Then, feeling frustrated because I could not understand why this was happening, I decided to try the time-worn trick of unplugging and restarting it.
And almost magically, the printer was back online and functioning!
Suddenly I realized that this was a timely metaphor about the need for all of us to unplug and periodically step back from our work or the media. Doing so allows us to renew ourselves so we can be sustainable for the long haul.
Remember, brushing your mind to stay sane in an insane world is not just limited to managing negative emotions. It is also an important part of our ongoing mental hygiene practice. Being proactive about unplugging yourself from work, the news, or technology is an effective way to reduce the likelihood of stress building up to a point where it can impede our performance and even harm our health.
As with many things in life, you probably already know this. But the challenge lies in the doing. So to help you unplug from current events, here is a mini-meditation to support your wellbeing. You can use it now and also come back any time you want a break from the news. Cheers!
Mini-Meditation: Village Walk in Alsace
This is the village of Eguisheim in the region of France called Alsace.
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