Necessary Quiet

I don't know if it's the time of year, or the blogs I follow, or what, but lately I've  been seeing a lot of posts out there about taking a step back from all the "noise," unplugging from social media, and getting back the perspective and focus that can so easily be lost in the whirwind of it all. 

This sentiment is everywhere.  It's definitely in me.

I went in for a massage a few days ago, and my masseuse didn't even need to touch me to see it.  She took one look at the apparently obvious knots in my neck and asked how much quiet time I'm getting each day. 

I laughed.  Quiet time?

Like when my kids are asleep or at school and I finally have a chance to do something like work on Book 3, or write a blog post, or answer interview questions, or check my email or my Twitter or my Amazon rankings or Goodreads reviews or...that kind of time?

She just looked at me with the kind of calm those spiritually aware people seem to have, and said: I know you live on the beach.  The beach that inspired you to write your book.  Starting today, you need to go down to that beach every day, no matter how busy you think you are and put your feet in the ocean.  Bury them  for a few minutes in the warmth of the sand.  And ground yourself there. Breathe it in, soak it up, give yourself a few minutes of quiet because it is absolutely necessary.

I wanted to hug her. Somehow she knew exactly what I needed to hear.  And she said it was necessary!

Quiet.

I think the desire to have it is a natural one, but one that gets lost when we have something big on the horizon, like say, the release of a book.  It's easy to get swept up in the anticipation and excitement and amazingness of it all.  But somewhere along the line it can get to be a little overwhelming.  A little much.  A bit loud.



So we have to unplug.  Leave the email unchecked and the Twitter feed without an update. Let the world of social media and networking go on happily without us while we take a breather and get back to the other world that's been going on all around us this whole time.  The one we've kind of been missing, where we put our feet in the ocean, or watch the sunset, or cozy up with an actual book instead of the computer.



It's about being present, and it's absolutely necessary.  So starting this month (June), I have a few goals: get off the computer (unless its actual writing), put my feet in the ocean every day (as soon as it warms up a few degrees I'll put the rest of me in too),  and enjoy being in the moment.  That's what summer's for, right?

What are you all looking forward to this summer?