I have two iPhones and I use them constantly. First thing in the morning, I check my phone for emails and likes without even being fully awake. I get even nervous when I haven’t looked at my phone for a while. After a long flight,  I would pick my phone out of my handbag before we have even left the plane. I switch on my phone to see whose messages I missed. But then came a electricity cut in Zimbabwe where I currently live, which allowed me to do a little experiment with myself.

Zimbabwe frequently experiences power shortages. The country’s power system relies on the Kariba damn in the north, that produces all its electricity. But its not enough and a way to deal with this is load shedding where you have scheduled time during the day where power comes on. I live in an area that has however electricity 24/7. I normally don’t even realize the power shortages until the day I did.

At first, I played cool and could resist my urge not to get power back. A few hours later, I went to the office to work from there and took my phones and laptops with me to ensure I could access the internet. I stayed up until 10pm to watch YouTube videos and my Instagram posts. The next day, power didn’t come back. Neither did it come back on the third day.

Since I meditated and was so keen on self growth, I told myself, I will do an experiment and see what happens if I let go. My mind went mad: “What if something happens and you will not know about it?” or “”What if so many people text you and you can’t read their messages?” and “You are not posting regularly anymore on Twitter. People will notice.” As soon I overcame that first initial restlessness and urge, I became calmer. I didn’t miss my phone. It took an entire day though.

I became aware how addicted I was to constantly look at my phone, to wait for messages and unable to sit still and not feel the urge to text three people. But once I stayed in these emotions, that made me very uncomfortable, they went away. My mind calmed down and I felt more relaxed. That very moment, electricity was back in Zimbabwe. Thank God!