Disconnecting to Really Connect

These past couple of weeks have been very interesting for many of us here in the south. Many of us have witnessed the awesome power of nature and the aftermath she leaves behind. For some, it was utter devastation and my heart truly goes out to those who lost so much. For the rest of us, it means rolling up our sleeves and pitching in to help our neighbors in need.

Many of us during this time were without electricity, which is truly a minor inconvenience in the wake of all that had happened to many of those near us. In fact, being without electricity for over four days actually ended up being quite a blessing and eye opener for me and my family.  It really gave us some wonderful distraction free time together. We have always been a close family that really does spend a lot of time together, but it was amazing how the quality of that time went up without the many distractions we normally have on a day to day basis. The other amazing part to me was the creativity that came when our day to day distractions were gone. We had a great time seeing what clever thing we could make on the grill for our meals. Did you know you can make cinnamon rolls, banana bread, snicker doodles and barbecue chicken pizza all on your outdoor grill? Sure it takes some extra time and effort, but it was well worth it! We actually had some of the best meals ever during this time. I also reveled in the opportunity to read books at night to my teenage children again. What made it even better is that they loved it too!

So, what distractions do you have in your life right now that could be hindering your work or office? Now don’t get me wrong, electricity and technology are wonderful things, but I dare you to turn those things off just for an hour and let the creative juices flow. Take the time to find a quiet place where you won’t be interrupted, take a single light with you, a flashlight or a lantern or something like that, and just sit, enjoy the silence, and let everything else in your life go for just a short while. Don’t purposefully think about anything, and purposefully refuse to think about anything you “have” to be doing. I think you may be amazed at the results. Let me know if you try and what your results were.

Sometimes, I think we just need to disconnect to really connect.

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