Ever since I was young, alone time has been my biggest temptation. Plans, friends, and ‘to do’ lists have fallen to the wayside as I chase after solitude and quiet. Through the years as my heart has grown closer to living a self-sufficient, farming lifestyle, the craving for alone time has grown as well.

It’s a running joke between loved ones that if someone wants to get a hold of me, they have to call or text my boyfriend. After a 40-hour work week of staring at a computer, technological-anything makes me cringe and it tends to take a backseat in my life.

On top of my desire for quiet alone time, I am in the process of leaving one job, starting a new job, and attempting to launch my own online shop; in other words, life has felt a bit too busy for my liking lately. The changes, the endings and beginnings, the goodbyes and hellos — before I knew it, I was metaphorically running to get away from the noise of it all.

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Just two weeks ago, I was standing in front of a beautiful, open creek in Vermont. The water flowed energetically over the rocks as the summer bugs hummed in the background. The faintest breeze swept through the area as leaves rustled and birds took flight. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath of the fresh mountain air, and my heart sighed: Home.

Every time I visit my future home state, it gets a bit harder to leave. The drive home feels a bit more daunting, and the noises of home seem a bit more harsh. The constant go, go, go of my home region feels awkward and displaced, as if the motion of it all belongs in someone else’s life and not mine.

So as a result of too many life changes mixed with an uncomfortable attempt to slip back into my current day-to-day, I went unplugged.

Last week as I pulled overtime in preparation of leaving my job, I stopped everything else. When my car pulled into the driveway each night after leaving 12 hours earlier, there was nothing left for my blog, social media, or anything even remotely technology-related.

My cell phone was left dead for days. My email’s inbox staggered to the triple digits. My camera wasn’t touched. My social media came to a hush.

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And nothing bad happened. In the end, unplugging only brought good into my day. It made room for all the lovely moments I craved so much from my trip to Vermont. It returned the quiet solitude to my heart and soul that I thought could only be found in a home away from home.

Have you ever just sat in the forest and noticed how the light plays patterns on the trees? Have you ever stopped to just listen to a bird’s song and wonder where they are headed in their day? Have you ever closed your eyes as a breeze comes through and stop to feel how it awakens each one of your cells?

After going unplugged, I felt the sun, embraced nature, listened to the birds’ songs, and slowly enjoyed each cup of coffee that came my way. Peace, solitude, and quiet all came naturally when I was unplugged, and as I slowly come out of week’s cocoon, I realize I found exactly what I needed.

And as I slowly inch back into the ‘plugged-in’ life of blogging, emails, scheduling tweets, social media, and the whole nine yards, there’s a quiet serenity in knowing that what my soul craves is a simple ‘off’ button away.

Do you crave ‘unplugged’ time?

Do you prefer a fast or slow paced life?