Ashton.Gustafson

It’s pretty easy to see the current state of our collective and habitual yes’s. We don’t have to look far. Unfortunately, you’re probably even looking at it directly right now….the screen.

Facebook, ‘likes’, tweets, retweets, Netflix, and the NFL…these screens have captured our yes’s.

This collective yes, has caused us to collectively say no to life. By life I mean the depth and width and color and flavor of the human experience. The space where we can hold beauty, walk with mystery, embrace paradox, and pursue unity in-lieu of uniformity.

When we say no to life, we stop the progression towards something better and more beautiful than we can imagine. On the other hand, a yes to life is a yes to resurrection, renewal, communion, diversity, and togetherness – the themes of all great stories we share and remember.

So what happens if we start to collectively say no to such things? Of course quitting cold turkey probably isn’t the fix here. But what if little by little, your no’s offered you more space to say yes.

Could some silence in the morning be the seed sown to reap your music throughout the day?

What if you read the classics instead of scrolling through everyone’s SOS plea via their latest “I’m a victim” rant?

Could a note written to a friend move them more than a casual text sent with emojis?

What if you just started with saying no to Cyber Monday?

We have to say no to say yes.