Setting Out On A Grand Adventure

Last Christmas I got the most wonderful present from my Grandpa Gibb.  His autobiography.  Although it's really easy to procrastinate reading books when you're a busy university student, I decided this was one book I shouldn't hide on a shelf.  After a few pages in, I couldn't put it down.  I was taken captive by the amazing stories of his life, especially those of his childhood.  Stories of walking from the farm to school.  Stories of the kinds of pranks boys played back then.  Stories of watching the train tracks being laid to his hometown of Hillspring.  Stories of farming and the slow integration of modern technology into his livelihood.  Stories of meeting and falling in love with my Grandma.  Stories of a life well lived and a legacy to be proud of.

I was sad to finish this wonderful book, but what I felt even more than sadness after turning the last page was jealousy.  I was and still am unbelievably jealous of the world my Grandpa grew up in and the life he has had the privilege of living.  I wish that I lived out on a farm.  I wish that walking and horse riding were my main means of transportation, and that cars were a luxury.  I wish that each day I got out of bed early to work hard until sunset.  To physically work hard, rather than relying on technology to complete my tasks of the day.  I wish that conversation wasn't a mere exchange of pop culture and social media.  I wish that phone calls and letters were how I showed people I was thinking about them, rather than posting a video to their wall on Facebook.  I wish that life was more tangible and meaningful.  It feels like the world I live in is so superficial and fleeting compared to the world my Grandpa grew up in not so long ago.

Rather than making life easier and better, I have the overwhelming feeling that technology is simply making life more complicated and shallow.  Is it just me, or do the people from our grandparents era just seem more real?  I believe things seem this way because they didn't have the kind of artificial distractions that we struggle with today.  Rather than losing themselves in what so-and-so just "tweeted" and the pictures what's-her-face just put up on Facebook, they lived in the world, their world, in the here and now.  They got to know exactly who they are.  They allowed themselves to filled with real substance, with real relationships, with real knowledge.  Today it seems like everyone is estranged from who they actually are.  We live in a world of imitations.  It's not cool to know yourself, your values, your thoughts, your world.  But it is cool to know what's going on in that magical place called cyberspace.

Although it's been almost a year since reading Grandpa's autobiography, I haven't been able to quit thinking about the things I could do to dejunk my own life.  Ways that I could in a way mimic the life my Grandpa had "back in the day."  It has been relatively easy to come up with ideas.  Unfortunately, the implementation of those ideas is a completely different story.  I'm embarrassed to admit that there are things in my life I consider a need that are in NO way a need.  I don't need Facebook.  I don't need an iPhone with data.  I don't need those things at all.  I would continue to live quite nicely without them.  Then why can't I seem to just put them away for good?

I think the answer lies in the words be, do, have.  For some reason, it seems like we cut ourselves short of living the type of life we want to live because we convince ourselves that when we have what we want, like more time, then we'll be able to do the things that will make us happy, which will then make us be the type of person we want to be.  However, things don't usually work out that way.  I've been telling myself these have lies for almost a year!  When I have more time; when I have a job; when I have the energy, then I'll be able to do what I need to in order to be the Kristen I want to be.

Today I woke up and decided to flip those words around.  I've decided I'm sick of playing the waiting game.  I'm sick of wishing I could have a certain way of life and then doing nothing to get it.  Today I decided that I'm going to be the Kristen I want to by doing the sorts of things my Grandpa would have done back when he was my age.  I'm sure he wasn't on Facebook.  I'm sure he wasn't on his iPhone.  I'm sure he was living here and now.  And by doing this, I'm absolutely positive that I'll have the type of deep and real life I've been craving since reading my Grandpa's autobiography.

So I guess what I'm saying is that I'm going to dejunk my life.  And the first place I'm going to start is by deleting Facebook.  So, if you happen to find your way to my blog via Facebook, I invite you to find a different way of getting here.  I love having you come and check things out.  It makes my day to hear somebody took the time to snoop around my silly little blog.  Ways that you can continue to find your way here include: googling "near-life experience," I'm the fourth hit; bookmarking my page; becoming a follower; or following by e-mail.  Not too hard eh?

Well, it feels good to get all of this out of my system.  Have a nice weekend.