FIXATIONS

PRACTICE: Look at the last few pictures on your cell phone. What story do they tell?

Our fixations are many…most directly related to technology. We are fixated with living life on social media as a depositor or recipient. Every awaken moment is filled with something. Sleeping moments are not less filled. We plug in to this or we download that while sleeping so that upon awakening, the task is completed. How many of us preset the coffee pot to start brewing at the exact moment the alarm goes off for wake up?

The perfect example of this malady are cell phone cameras and earbuds. I’ll deal with cameras for now. We are fixated with capturing the moment. Life’s happiest experiences are only fleeting. Literally, people are dying to take the perfect picture of an experience to share via social media. People go to places that they have dreamed of seeing and spend their time doing what? Taking pictures. People pay hundreds of dollars to see their favorite artist and then do what? Take selfies. The camera captures the posed face or crazy expression. The camera cannot capture the essence of the moment. When people look at the photos, all they see is the pose or a still life of the scenery. Could this be the reason the response is, “Looks beautiful or looks like fun?” What is shared via the photo is a fraction of the story.

The most important part of the story is you! But you can only tell the story to the extent of what you experienced. The picture sets the stage, you, the actor makes it live. Sadly, the other parts of the experience may never be delivered accurately even with video. You can tell the listener about the mist on you face from the waterfall, or the cold seeping through you jacket as you stood in the dungeon. They will not feel it. So why do we spend so much time taking multiple shots that ultimately only occupy memory space on the device? We have a fixation!

If the experience is worth taking a picture…take it. And then untether from the device and soak it all in. Participate in the moment so that it is indelibly inked on the places that matter most – your heart and brain. Others with you will know that you are very present…unless they are busy taking pictures and then you can show them a more excellent way. Those with whom you share the photos will have a better chance of getting a glimpse of what you experienced because you lived in the moment.

Most of us are not photographers or reporters. Life’s happiest moments are fleeting, choose to engage rather than record.

Ecclesiastes 6:9

PONDER THIS THOUGHT- Participant or observer. Which role do I usually play?