Lara Tupper: Swift Ink Stories

Read this newsletter. Then take a break.

I sent my first email when I was 19, a sophomore in college. It was a novelty I didn't understand. In the crowded computer lab--few of us owned computers then--I emailed my roommate. Then I saw her ten minutes later, back in our dorm.

Now I teach a workshop at Kripalu Center called Social Media Break. (They say you teach what you need to learn.) No devices allowed. Only tactile pleasures: drawing, writing, speaking, laughing. I notice, by the end of class, I feel less anxious, more grounded. Less entrenched in the comings and goings of 1000 + Facebook connections.

For more on this theme, please see a piece I wrote for Kripalu Resources. "What's Not to 'Like': Jealousy, Desire and Social Media"

And then, grab your pen!

August writing exercise: Turn off your phone. Hide it. Take a few deep breaths and pick up your writing tools. (No laptops for this one. Use paper and pen.) Make a simple list of things that bring you joy. Aim for 20.Let it be messy. L…