Time OUT-Side
Sitting outside there is a lot to notice. Depending on where exactly you are taking your time-OUT, you may be viewing birds fly by, waves crashing upon the shore, clouds floating above mountain tops, or people passing by a park bench you are sitting on. The point of taking a time-OUT isn’t where you choose to take it, but that you choose to take it in the first place.
Let’s think about our usual definition of a time-out vs a time-OUT. Time-out is a consequence used in a discipline scenario. The point of time-out is to take your attention away from the child’s behavior in an effort to help them understand what’s okay and not okay to do. Time-OUT is the practice of disconnecting from everything that falls into the “I have to do it” category and gives us a break from these daily tasks. When you leave your phones and other electronics behind, this time-OUT can really have an impact.
On any given day, we are pressed into engaging in thousands of tasks from the mundane to the most demanding. Even if/when these are tasks that we enjoy or don’t find very bothersome, the fact that we have so many things impinging on our time means that we have created a scenario in which stress arises. Stepping back and out of these situations for a time creates a moment of disconnect that ultimately allows us to reconnect in a more positive, calm, and thoughtful manner. Long-term, this means we are going to have a better quality of life in all senses of the phrase from relationships with other people to our views of ourselves.
Now, the OUT part of time-OUT. We can take a break anywhere. I in fact have just finished one while sitting at my desk. But sitting at my desk taking a couple minutes to compose my thoughts feels very different from the break I took earlier today when I did in fact go outside. On that break, I completely stopped thinking about the things that I had to do and simply enjoyed my surroundings. I noticed the sights, sounds, and smells. There were baby bunnies and birds starting to gather for their migrations south; grass was a bright green and the sky was a bright blue contrasting sharply with the whites in the clouds and the evergreen shades of the tree tops; my horse nickered to me when I arrived and spent a good bit of time standing beside me in a hug. Had I been thinking about the work tasks necessary for today- notes from sessions that need to get done; this blog post that needs to be written; phone calls that have to be made and returned- I would have missed all of it. Going through life distracted is a waste and a drain. This depletes energy, decreases pleasure and happiness, and leads to chronic stress which can have a substantial toll on all aspects of health.
We live in an age of disconnect. Now, I’m not saying technology is bad. Technological advances have given us a great deal and in many ways have made our lives better. But as with anything good, there is a catch. The catch with technology is it pulls us out of nature and away from genuine in-person connections with others. I love that I can turn on my computer or hit an app on my phone and talk to or message someone in a different part of the world from where I am. I love that I can see pictures of places I have never been and may never get to go. Technology also means that those notes I mentioned earlier can be typed in half the time it used to take me to write them. Technology isn’t bad. It does need to be balanced.
Time-OUT. Take time and turn off the screens. Get outside and connect with nature. Maybe go for a swim or a walk. Or find a tree and sit beneath it in the shade. Maybe bring a book or a sketchpad, but mostly just notice what’s going on around you. And then take a moment to notice what this time-OUT has done for you. Are you feeling calmer? Happier? Less stressed? Itchy? (There are bugs outside after all 😊). Take the time. It’s worth putting yourself into the equation.