Turning Down the Noise : Finding Home 4.1
Happy Belated New Year friends! I would make a “can you believe it’s 2020” remark, but really, can we just take a moment to acknowledge it’s the 20th anniversary of civilization surviving the computers? Okay, cool.
I hoped to get this out sooner, but then life got so full of job searching, job finding, and general craziness. But a new year means a new volume of this monthly(ish) letter, and I so appreciate you sticking around. Look for this in your inbox on the last Saturday of the month. My goal for 2020 is to actually make this happen. ;)
In this letter, I have some reflections on starting the year with quiet, and please don’t miss the short reader survey I’ve put together after the essay. (or just click here and get it done, if you really like taking surveys) Your responses will help me continue to write something helpful and meaningful for you every month.
***
“So, what have I missed on my Twitter vacation?” I ask Chris, half-joking, mostly not. We are driving to Cambridge on a cloudy, slightly unseasonably warm January day. I have a supervision meeting for my spiritual direction training, and in the Boston traffic, I’m slightly itching to pick up my phone, realizing I forgot to bring a book and I’ve already read all my emails.
He updates me on the current political events that everyone is talking about. I feel mildly pleased that I actually know a little bit about what’s going on in the world. It is the final day of my annual social media fast, but the absence of noise has felt so good I’m tempted to extend it one more week.
I can think of many names for this thing I do — a fast, a disappearance, a vacation, an unplugging, a spiritual practice, a reordering of habits, a necessary reset. I have yet to settle on a name. But whatever it is, I’m surprised by the same things year after year.
I’m surprised by how much quieter the world feels, like a great, noisy rage has been softened. Surprised I can hear my thoughts again. Surprised by how a few minutes on Twitter can send me spiraling into deciding what I think about everything from politics to American evangelical drama to racism to my true feelings about the latest Star War.
I am surprised that I keep getting surprised.
This tradition started several years ago when my church was fasting together and I didn’t want to give up food. (Embarrassing, but true.) But at some point, it became a thing I look forward to, a way of marking a new year. Apparently, I’m not alone in this, as Seth Haines has been writing about Dry January on his blog, and his decision to give up the news:
“In the days leading up to the new decade, I sensed my anxiety and anger ratcheting up each time I turned to the news… And so, I quit.
In just sixteen days, my skepticism has waned, and it’s allowed me to see the neighbor behind the talking head. It’s increased my capacity for compassion, even if I’ve not put it into action perfectly. The anxiety of a world falling apart doesn’t sit on my chest like a gorilla escaped from the zoo.”
Me too, Seth. Me. Too.
Were we made for this information age, this constant barrage of tweets and news and images and opinions? Is the human heart capable of holding knowledge of every sad and bizarre thing that happens in the world? I’m not so sure. There are so many broken things to care about, so many wounds we cannot tend with only two hands. Eventually the information stream becomes a flood, and it threatens to pull us under.
And yet, there’s still the gift of awareness. I’m grateful for my Twitter feed and the way it connects me to fellow writers, lets me listen in on conversations from people who don’t look like me, and adds some humor and cat videos to my life. I love staying in touch with far flung friends on Facebook, and seeing the beautiful pictures and thoughtful words people share on Instagram. No matter how frustrating it gets and how much I enjoy the quiet, I can’t quite bring myself to quit. I don’t even want to.
I don't really have a neat conclusion to this. I suppose, cliché as it might seem, navigating this noisy world takes balance. When it comes to the news, it’s good to be aware of the outside world, to listen to the movements in your soul and ask exactly what you and you alone can do. You can look around, recognize the patch of ground you’re meant to tend, and get to work.
But silence and breaks and space help too. It’s hard to hear your calling with too much noise going on.
***
A FEW QUICK QUESTIONS
I just looked back at the Finding Home archive and realized I sent the very first letter a little over 4 years ago. Um, what? That’s kind of a long time. (We will forget the year and a half I kind of went on hiatus though. Wait. No we won’t, now that I mentioned it. Ha.)
Thanks so much for sticking around and reading! It means a lot that you’d leave room in your inbox for this, and I want to make sure it’s an email you actually enjoy getting. Would you take a couple minutes to fill out a quick survey for me?
It’s only 3 quick questions about what you like to see here and how often you’d like to get emails from me, plus some space to share all your ideas and feedback. Just click here to take the survey! And as always, feel free to hit reply if you want to say hello.
WRITING ELSEWHERE
It’s funny, I feel like I’ve been writing a bunch of stuff that hasn’t actually appeared online yet. But hey, even though Christmas is over, why not revisit the Magnificat meditation I wrote for The Mustard Seed Conspiracy?
And ahhh yes, year end lists. Every year, I feel a little less inclined to make a “best of” list, but once again, I got to participate in a couple of fun collaborative lists. Once again, I participated in UTR Media’s Critics Panel, and together we came up with our Top 11 Gourmet Albums of 2019! (Plus honorable mentions.)
If you’d like a MASSIVE list from The Rabbit Room crew, check out Stuff We Liked in 2019 to rediscover some good music, books, film, and TV you might have missed. (Not necessarily all 2019 things, because we're allll about the slow takes.)
And just for fun, here’s a Spotify playlist sampling some of my favorite music from 2019.
PSA: Lore Ferguson Wilbert's new book Handle with Care is on the way, with some sweet pre-order bonuses. And I'm so honored to have a poem in the bonus poetry collection Such As These, featuring Eric Schumacher, Rachel Joy Welcher, Nate Wilbert, Caroline Cobb, and other fine folks! Good poetic company indeed. Pre-order her super great book at your favorite online bookseller, and redeem your receipt here to claim your freebies.
Finally, can you keep a secret? Yeah? Okay. ;) I am currently working on a few contributions for She Reads Truth! I really appreciate their work, and am so excited to have something ready to go for their upcoming Philippians study, with a couple other pieces in the works. Keep an eye out for those sometime in February.
SOME GOOD THINGS
This is normally where I do the 5 Things I'm Loving List, but... trying out a new thing. If you take my survey, you can let me know which one you like better. ;)
Books: I am really loving Handle with Care, and excited to be part of the #HWCBook launch team! (Review coming soon to The Rabbit Room and/or my blog) Also just finished up Gordon Smith’s The Voice of Jesus, an excellent, comprehensive, and thoughtful book about discernment and prayer. When I’m not reading my homework pile, I am getting lost in Erin Morgenstern’s new book The Starless Sea for my Big Winter Novel.
Music: S. Carey’s Hundred Acres, Josh Garrels’ Home, and various Iron and Wine records have been living on the turntable lately. #wintervibes
Podcasts: The Habit: Conversations with Writers About Writing is exactly what you would expect, and it’s delightful. Season 2 just launched, in which we are reminded yet again, “You can’t write like Tolkien, but Tolkien can’t write like you either.
TV: I just finished LOST. I am not okay. Look, I thought the super divisive ending was beautiful and Chris and I were sitting on the couch crying and I do not cry during TV shows. Worth every long, confusing minute. Also, The Good Place series finale is coming next week, and this gif sums up how I feel about that.
Eating & Drinking: Your annual winter reminder that this ramen recipe is easy and pretty amazing.
Other Cool Things: I just realized I used OmmWriter to bang out a whole bunch of first drafts and really, this is my favorite writing app ever. Full screen, beautiful backgrounds, clicky keyboard noises, and soothing music are the only way to get unstuck sometimes.
Thanks for reading, friends! Here’s one more reminder to take my survey plz. Peace to you in the winter season, and may your new year be filled with good things.
~Jen