No phones, no exceptions
Unplugged at Pitney Meadows — tonight’s surprise revealed, and how to join the fun.
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Mindfulness Practitioner Leah Ferrone, of Brave Lion Mind fame, has always been enchanted by the sunsets at Pitney Meadows, so when she started planning a weekly digital detox gathering with her husband, fifth grade teacher Joe Ferrone, naming it was easy. “The sunset there takes my breath away every single time,” she says. “So one day I was like, ‘Let's just call it Summer Sunset Socials.’”
The name stuck, and the all-ages weekly events — right now scheduled for 6:30 to 8:30 Wednesday nights through August 6 — have become a set time to shun phones (disposable cameras and Polaroids are OK), play games, take nature walks, or indulge in some good old-fashioned conversation. The trial event brought in about 50 people, and tonight’s kick-off is already sold out. (Sorry.) So pre-register for next time, leave your phone in the car — or a locker will be provided for you — and prepare to fill your lungs with fresh air as you (mindfully) watch how long it takes to stop involuntarily reaching for your phantom phone.
Dispatch: Set the scene for a first-timer walking up to your event.
Leah: You have a lot of space, so you can do your own thing. Some people didn't even interact with other people, and some were there to be social. Pitney Meadows has a community garden area, and this amazing little gazebo with picnic tables. So there were about 20 adults playing cards — usually, there would be six cell phones on the table or music playing, but instead it just a bunch of grownups playing cards and laughing. It was beautiful.
You can also frolic around, walk in the meadow. At our kind of beta event, one of the fathers was off flying a kite. When he came back, he was like, “I can't remember the last time that I got lost in an activity that was so like joyful and free, and invited my full attention.”
Dispatch: That’s a powerful moment. Do you have any others to share?
Leah: One woman told me they were supposed to go to a swim lesson after our event. She said, “I was looking at my watch and thought, “I'm so tired of rushing from one thing to another. We’re just going to stay here. My kids are flying kites and playing with bubbles, and they're just so happy.” It was a really great parent awareness moment. Yes, we can choose to not rush around and enjoy these moments.
Dispatch: What has been the reaction so far?
Leah: So many families came over to us and said, “I knew we needed this, but I didn't know how badly or how good it would feel to just be.”
Dispatch: I'm so thankful that I had a childhood before cell phones.
Leah: Me too, Abby. I think about this all the time, and it makes me so much more compassionate towards youth right now. They didn't ask to be in this digitally saturated world. Sometimes we get so frustrated with them when they're showing symptoms of being addicted to their screen. But we have no idea what it's like to be growing up in this time. So we have to create spaces and places, times and boundaries for them so that they can have these embodied experiences where they can connect with their neighbors. And that was the other thing last week — there were so many kids there, and a lot of them didn't know each other. But if you get out of kids’ way, they’ll figure it out.
Dispatch: Did they surprise you with what they came up with when left to their own devices?
Leah: We just threw a bunch of kids in the meadow and they were coming up with their own games. The kids understood the assignment, and they slipped right into the curiosity and the joy and everything that came with it. Seeing the parents witness that, and then also practice that themselves — that was probably the biggest win.
Dispatch: What can people expect tonight?
Leah: My husband has these brain teasers made of rocks and sticks. How often do we actually stick with a hard task where we have to work cognitive function and creativity to problem-solve? In a normal day, we give something a brief few moments and then we like look it up on our phones. So I will tell you that some of these things he is doing, they will blow your mind.
Dispatch: What’s next?
Leah: We’re already talking about how we can carry on with this and what it could look like in the fall and in the winter months — what would it be like to connect to nature during these other seasons. So it'll probably end up being Sunset Socials [without the “Summer”] down the road.
Pre-register for Summer Sunset Socials, 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Wednesdays at Pitney Meadows Farm. Price is $20 per car; scholarships are available.
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Wish cell phones were banned in more places. Restaurants, gyms, public transportation to start