I screen. You screen. We all screen for connection!
Let’s take time out to walk away from our screens into nature.
Venturing into nature leads to bee- eautiful discoveries.
Why is it more important for us to get likes and comments from strangers than to have real connection with people who love us? Why is it almost impossible to finish a face-to-face conversation with a friend or family member, when we feel that vibration in our pockets or on our wrists?
Like it or not, many of us, young and not-so-young, are seriously addicted to our screens. Whether it be doom scrolling through social media, playing video games, watching YouTube or TikTok videos , we’re simply not available for real-time talk time or play time with people who matter or should matter.
We have literally become separated from one another by our screens. Sadly, this addiction seems to be having the most negative impact on our youngsters - with many spending over 7 hours a day glued to their smartphones, tablets or computers. This is detrimental to both their physical and mental health – resulting in insomnia, anxiety and depression.
The reality is, screens are an essential part of our lives and they’re not going away. So we need to find ways to escape their powerful hold over us.
I do have a couple of simple antidotes:
- Spending time with a dog - preferably outdoors.
Romping through the grass, trees and mud with our four-legged friends earths us, re-connects us to the real world and nature. The spontaneous joy that dogs feel in-the-moment – running, rolling, eating, playing – is a reminder to us humans to do the same.
- Interactive reading time, be it adult to child, friend to friend, human to dog. For children, it is the most important activity for reading success. It activates auditory and visual processing in the brain, it develops vocabulary and is critical bonding time.
Lulu & Sarge in the Bee Sting Operation is specifically written as a read-aloud to connect creatures great and small. It is written in rhyming couplets and is peppered with puns, idioms and unexpected light-weight philosophies about life. This makes for an interesting read for older children and adults – who can explain the more difficult words and concepts to the little ones. Accompanied by charming illustrations, this little book has been created for big connections.
