Life Without Home Internet

When we think about giving something up, we envision a gaping hole wanting to be filled. Whether this be a habit, a favorite desert, soda, or something else, we simply can't imagine life without certain things.. So was the reaction from many of our friends when we announced we were disconnecting our home internet. "How will you socialize," some from church asked.
It is truly amazing how dependent we are on instant access to the internet. Now mind, we did not disconnect to make a statement, but it has opened our eyes to a remarkable truth. Our lives have become so tied to the Web that we can scarcely imagine our lives with out it. Just think, it was only a little over 20 years ago that the Internet was becoming a thing. Online gaming become popular in the 2000's (Yet I was content playing Simm City by myself).

To put our rapidly this change took effect, consider my older brother's generation vs. my own. We were both committed to Royal Rangers (our denomination's Boy Scout's equivalent). When he went to leadership camp, my brother experience a strong sense of comradery among his peers. Eight years later, all the guys talked about was the latest multi-player game and they showed little to no initiative when it came to our camp priorities. I was bullied by them and felt very much alone during those weeks at camp. It seemed I was the only one who had any desire for achievement.

Eight years was all that took. To go from a generation who could work as a focused unit, to being a divided, confused, bunch whose only desire was to get back to gaming. And now here I am, a 20-somethings adult expecting his first child. I still have a computer game I play once in a while, but I am now fully aware how consuming games and internet can be. Time that could be spent writing songs, starting a business, teaching music lessons, and one day parenting our children, all lost in an ever entangling Web. This is why Elena and I made a personal choice to disconnect our home internet.

Obviously, we still find time to be on-line. Yet, now we have ample time to do the other things we've said we'd "get around to." Let me tell you our apartment is a lot cleaner, we are learning more on how we should prepare for little Hansen, and we are developing our God given talents and dreams.

Life without home internet has not left a gaping hole, as many thought it would. Rather it has made room to be filled with much greater and more fulfilling things. Our lives feel more full than ever!