Screens and mental clutter

I often feel that I move too fast, and worry that I don't give myself enough time to linger and ruminate. I'd like to slow down, declutter my mind, but I don't always succeed in doing so on an every day basis. Part of the mental clutter is definitely derived from too much screen time, as most of modern life is mediated through screens. For this reason, I read this article titled "You're Getting 'Screen Time' wrong" by Ian Bogost in The Atlantic with interest. You probably think that:

If only you could put down your phone and listen to your spouse, or read a book, or embrace the sensation of your own existence, then surely you would be a happier, better person.

But this is wrong. Screen time is not a metric to optimize downward, but a name for the frenzy of existence in an age defined by screens. You may try to limit the time that you or your children spend with screens, and this may bring you minor triumphs. But you cannot rein in screen time itself, for screen time is the speed of life today. To recognize that fact—and to understand how it happened—is a small, important step toward salvation.

...The fact is, you cannot participate fully in contemporary life without devoting a substantial amount of time to the screen. Even if you try to pare back your screen time to some bare minimum for engagement with the world today, whatever quantity remains will still be chaotic and attention-shattering by nature.

Considering the ubiquity of screens in daily life and their necessity, the goal is to try and curve out a space where you can put them down for reprieve. It's also worth exploring what sorts of activities you are doing on screens and how do you feel about them, then adjust your behaviour accordingly. For me, being outdoors without a screen is all I need to reset my brain. I simply need to take my own advice and do it more often.

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