No Phone, NO PROBLEM…
It was Christmas Day, and I was packing for a brief vacation in Algarve, Portugal with my husband and daughters…I needed enough garb and other essentials for five days off-season, exploring rustic coastlines as well as charming city streets.
Day 1, lunch at an Algarve beach with Step, post-redeye flight.
Temps would be between 45 and 65 degrees Fahrenheit. - by no means balmy, but a welcome change from freezing New England. The best part? We would be meeting my brother, Step (who lives in Germany and Greece), there!
With our flight coming up in about six hours, time was tight. So were the confines of my humble, red, carry-on suitcase. Santa had just brought me two pairs of grounding shoes -Groundz BIOS and Raum Meccas (who can resist Black Friday sales?). And to be honest, I was looking forward to trying them out and taking some fun European vacation photos in the process.
In hindsight (and at risk of revealing my geeky side), was I too obsessed with photographing my grounding shoes? Probably…the Universe, God, the Force – whatever you want to frame that bigger-than-me energy as – was about to nudge me with a life lesson.
Right before I became aware of the phone-free challenge ahead, my family and I were trudging through airport security - two of us with shoes on, two without. Successfully through, with most of my sanity intact (and my “ariport socks” now tucked in the side pocket of my carry on bag), I kick off this much needed vacation with a refreshing Belgian ale.
A few sips into it, I think to text Step. Reaching into my backpack pocket, I fish for my phone and find…nothing. After what seems like an endless minute of fruitless searching, the alarm starts to set in. I down my beer, and mentally, then physically, retrace my steps.
Discovered this fascinating mural in Cascais, a town on the ocean near Lisbon, while exploring stone walks and streets in uber-comfy Raum Meccas.
I’ve no luck finding it at the currency exchange booth or back in the security area. In a last ditch effort, I go through the entire security line AGAIN, and -for the first time ever – due to the time crunch, stand with arms in a gesture of surrender in that EMF-drenching, full-body imaging machine like the obedient, non-questioning civilian I am in this moment. I have to do this, I tell myself… It’s my PHONE!
I look under benches where it could have fallen. I search every pocket and crevice that I contacted over the last two hours…Nothing. Either it fell out of my bag when I was fumbling with the passports and boarding passes, or someone swiped it from me. No matter… I was about to explore a foreign country without my indispensable device….no photos, no calls, no texts, no emails and no internet. No checking the weather…no Google Maps or Google Translate!
I get to meet Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal’s pride!
But then a funny thing happens... I resign myself to the circumstances. And the minute I let go of my need to have a phone and camera on this trip, I start to relax. I feel at peace and am even relieved. Interestingly enough, I start physically feeling better too.
Cold symptoms, which had earlier today flirted with my consciousness, start to fade. Could this improvement be due to (non-alcoholic) interventions I swallowed a few hours prior? Sure….they work. Later, though, I realize that freedom from my phone also played a role in my enhanced sense of wellbeing. So did, of course, being in nature, at the beach…but I digress.
Sans phone, I settle in for the redeye and try to get some shuteye. I pull my black, TRU47, EMF-blocking beanie over my eyes (it doubles as an eye mask), and manage to doze for a few hours.
On a side note, this lightweight TRU47 beanie hat, which is woven with silver threading to shield the head from excess EMFs, has become a travel essential. Not only does it block out light on airplanes and in hotel rooms, but it also mitigates wireless EMF which pervades these environments and can disrupt sleep.
My husband, for whatever reason, likes to photograph me snoozing on airplanes - with and without this hat. Is it for a laugh or is he jealous because I actually get some rest…or both?
After a tolerable, overnight flight (six hours isn’t too bad), we arrive in Lisbon at 6:30 am, and embark in our rental car toward the southern Algarve shoreline. Thankfully, my husband and daughter have their phones, so we’re able to access driving directions (as I write this, I still struggle with my love-hate feelings toward smart phones).
Verdant grasses and rocky terrain characterize the countryside, which is freckled with thirsty trees. Unlike the precipitous Boston area, Portugal is quite arid. With magnificent reddish-tan cliffs defining golden, sandy beaches, Algarve reminds me of a more rustic California…She’s a natural and wild, yet humble and domesticated, beauty. Facing both the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, her shores offer limitless possibilities for chasing sunsets with both the joy and convenience of spontaneity.
The kids are out in the back of the car – slumped over each other after an overnight marathon of airline movies. I find myself lulled into a nap, but want to really take in all the heart-satisfying scenery, since I no longer have a camera. And I realize something… without my phone, I must simply BE with my family, BE in this environment, and enjoy everything around me without capturing it.
Yup, the Universe, God, All That Is – whatever you want to call it – reminded me to be present in each moment with my children, husband and brother, and to appreciate the transient nature of those moments.
Like snowflakes, there will never be any other moments just like them in this ever-changing, temporary life.
Alas, I couldn’t lose myself in a two-dimensional visual world of photo editing or read all the daily newsletters in my Inbox that keep my mind busy. I couldn’t text updates and pictures to family members in the States who couldn’t join us. I couldn’t live any life besides the one right here and right now.
My husband was kind enough to indulge my photo-focused nature, and I sent myself these shots from his phone. And less proved indeed to be more…though I would have liked to share more scenic pics with you!
With my bare feet on the beach, I felt more grounded than I have in a long while. I chatted with locals and other tourists in cafes (almost everyone speaks some English in Portugal). I was home… in my body, in the sun, at the beach, and with my family.
That said, it wasn’t all butterflies and wildflowers…family vacations never are. But, by the time we flew back to Boston and found my phone in our car (I am lucky!), I knew that losing this 24-7 distraction was a true gift.
I’m grateful for all the experiences without it, as well as for the realization that I just don’t NEED to use my phone as much as habit dictates. Our phones are designed to seem indispensable and we rely on them to fill the empty spaces. But what if the patience to navigate those spaces – at least some of them – is what we really need?
While I still love the conveniences and mental stimulation my phone offers, I have resolved to be free from it... Using it will be my conscious choice, not a compulsion. Because there’s too much life happening around me that I don’t want to miss!
First look at the ocean, the morning of our arrival in Algarve.
A day after we got home, I started catching up on texts and emails. Would you believe that I then came down with a cold? Of course, it could be just coincidence that I felt better when I stopped using my phone and worse when I started using it again…after all, airline travel isn’t known for boosting health. But something in me knows that I need to be autonomous and phone-free more often… enough to make the most of this beautiful, God-given life.