Social Media Break For A Year Pt 2

Part 2 Social Media Break Blogging (01-25-25)

1. What moment or experience this week made you feel most alive or present?

Definitely today, Saturday. First we went to the humane society to at least check out a few dogs, walked a doggo named Grizzly, sweet boy, very shy and scared, but super sweet and loves tummy rubs. But we didnt get him as we are working out getting Emily's doctor to sign off on her need for an emotional support dog (or pet) …. Our 15 yr old and I would benefit from an emotional support animal. Emotionally I keep going back and forth on it as my sweet Marvy boy was euthanized just 9 months ago. So I of course want to love and own all the sweet babies, but taking even just one in feels like a form of rejection towards the boy I loved til his death. However, seeing this pet as Emily's pet, really helps me refrain my emotions around the situation, if that makes sense. Anyway… Jason got us Wendy's, it was joy filled (also artery filling lol) and then he went to work after dropping Em and I off at temple square so we could walk to memory Grove which we then sat for a few minutes in the cold then walked to the Capitol Building and there we planned for my cousin Chris to pick us up and we walked around while I took architectural photos and some of a girl in her quinceanera dress (Emily and I asked her mother if I could) I plan on sending what I took, to her moms cell number she gave me. I was pleasantly surprised she trusted me as I fear people would just think I'm weird if I asked which usually keeps me from succeeding professionally I'm certain… and then Chris picked us up and took us to Chipotle and I used my $25 gift card and then we went to watch Beetlegeuse at his friend's house and I had chocolate almonds and sparkling water then we came home and I edited the photos and Jason came and told me about his day….. it has been a thrilling yet normal day. Normal to some I'm sure but thrilling to me as the homebody I've become the last 10 years. This day made me feel so alive.

2. What was the most surprising thing you learned or realized this week?

That teens need to be listened to genuinely and judgment free. It's a different world then we remember and they are totally different people than us and it's something we need to see as magical and not dividing. They are not less than us just because they are young and sometimes greatly naive… in fact they get things we truly don't, things we have yet to, and things we couldn't understand that they can due to their access to internet sooner and more frequently than us older generation. They get what we couldn't at 15. Which means they are less naive than we were at that age. They have a whole lot of access to info we didn't early on in life. We had it bad. They are a big part of the world getting better simply because of early access to information.

There's pros and cons but there's more pros about this than people my age or older care to even notice and/or admit!

3. If this week were a song, poem, or metaphor, what would it be and why?

Sumiregusa (Wild Violet) by Enya

I'm too tired to explain why.

4. What was the hardest thing about staying off social media this week, and how did you overcome it?

Hardest part is reaching out for models or clients in need of a photographer for SOMETHING… however… It helps me exercise my mind by finding new or unique ways to take photos. Helps me be more creative! I love this kind of uncomfortability and growth that comes with it (shout out to cannabis!) But for the most part, I genuinely enjoy being off social media. It feels cleansing, new, vivid, transformative and best of all, it helps me pay attention to what I use to view as mundane. It helps me romanticize my entire life in ways I never thought I had the ability to but I do.

5. Describe a connection or interaction with someone that made your week feel meaningful.

I'm becoming closer with my 15 yr old. There's many interactions… Hard to choose even 3… but to sun it up… listening intently to what she has to say… her thoughts, feelings, experiences… and relating (but not too much or it becomes about me)

6. What did you accomplish or create this week that you're proud of, no matter how small?

I did dishes in moments I wanted to just be lazy (moments in pain are different)

7. What did you observe in the world this week that you might have missed while scrolling social media?

That damn hazy sky… really annoying lol.

Also so many dogs at the store and other public places. Love that <3

8. How did you take care of your mental and emotional well-being this week?

Daily showers and moisturizing. More water.

9. What’s one thing you’re grateful for this week that you rarely acknowledged before?

My sweet saint of a husband and his hard work.

10. What’s a piece of advice you’d give to someone considering a social media break based on this week’s experience?

I'm tellin ya….. this phone you look at… it's helpful and a modern necessity… but it is a distraction from the beauty in your life you view as simply mundane.

Go sit on the floor with a book and apple pie. Go throw some bird seed at a park and listen to the fluttering of pigeon wings. Look right in your spouses, pets, parents, siblings, or childs eyes and tell them you love them. Make bubbles from the shampoo in your hair while showering. Try a recipe you think would be impossible. Fold that laundry with intent and purpose. let your bare feet touch the cold ground. Allow yourself to go makeup free a little more than usual. Go volunteer in an environment you aren't used to. Notice the way the street lamps look by your home. Sit outside on your porch when you see your neighbor doing it. Stop and look at the intricate details and colors of all the veggies at the grocery store. Stop and see mundane things as more than they are. Because nothing is mundane. This life is seriously so short and we need to, not to sound cliche or like a broken record, but we need to make the absolute most of every second.

If you'd like to pay for my photo storage so you can see my photos every week, my cashapp is $AubsThePoet

It's only $20 a month :)