A Peaceful Plodding

Planting and pruning into a life without a smartphone

Week one into Lent, my initial thought was, “Yes, I am indeed a weak one.” I found myself habitually reaching for my phone, but I tried to comfort myself in that I at least noticed my thoughtless dopamine chasing. Now, slowly, I am making the transition to a greater simplicity as I put other things to do in place of potential lost hours of distraction and scrolling. Planting has been one place I’ve put my efforts, and pruning another.

Jeremiah (Jer 29:5-7) came to mind at the onset, with his exhortation to plant gardens while living in Babylon, and what is more Babylonian than our current world system with its celebration of excess, materialism, idolatry, and blasphemy? And what brings that all to my heart and mind faster than my pocket-sized smartphone, in a color I like and with all of the apps and settings that appeal to me?

Plant, I shall do then, I think. It will keep my fingers (and hopefully my heart) out of trouble.

Planting

I think of planting not only into the ground outside, bu…