Habits of Thought, Habits of Life: No Television

We know that the brain is where habit originates, and that behavior and character are both the result of whatever habits we develop. We also know that an inspiring idea sparks a new habit of thought, and, therefore, a new habit of life. We recognize that education's great work is to inspire children with enlivening ideas in every area of life, every category of knowledge, every subject we think about, and to deliberately help children to develop the habits of good living that come from inspiring ideas.
Charlotte Mason, volume 3, pg 173

Habits are such a tool for each and every one of us. How much easier is it to have good habits in place with our children and for ourselves as well.

Last June, we turned our satellite dish off and that meant that we have had absolutely no television at all since then. Although we did not watch a lot of television before, many times we found ourselves just watching the television and wasting time....a very bad habit. Very few "inspiring ideas" came from television viewing.

After turning it off, we found that none of us really missed it at all. Many of our friends and acquaintances looked at us as if we were crazy when we told them of our decision to eliminate television from our home. Some even asked what we did with our time, as if television was a valuable part of family life.

It was time for some new good habits, to deliberately and intentionally find activities that fit our family's priorities. We made a few changes and were inspired to do more to fill our spiritual needs.

Personal Bible study is a regular part of our Monday evenings now. Each of us takes an hour to work on something spiritual during that time. This habit has brought us all a great measure of happiness and inspired us with much to think about as we go through our week.

Along with that, we replaced the majority of our evenings with things that keep our hands and minds busy. Reading for fun, puzzle solving, handicrafts, long walks, board games, visiting with friends, and just enjoying each other's company have replaced the bad habit of staring at the television. These were all activities we enjoyed before the great television turn-off, but now we had additional time to devote to pursuing other things. New habits take time to develop and over the past six months we have begun to wonder how we fit television viewing into our busy lives.

We do include a DVD as part of our weekend family time. We enjoy our subscription to Netflix which has a practically endless source of upbuilding and entertaining DVDs to choose from. (Currently, our DVD player is on the blink so we have even cut DVD watching out as a family activity.)

So much of our popular culture is fed to us through images in advertisements and it is an added benefit to our family to have cut that flow of influence. Our time is better spent without that pressure to buy things we don't need and to focus more on developing new skills and habits.

Our new habits have enriched our life beyond our expectations.

It has simplified our lives, brought us closer together, and allowed us time to think. We have had more fun, learned new things about each other, and felt spiritually fed. Our sketch books are fuller, we have saved lots of money, and our dog is happier because she gets more frequent long walks. I can honesty say there has been no downside to turning off the satellite service.

If you are even thinking about turning your television off, I highly recommend giving it a try. You may be surprised at how easy it is for your children to switch over and build some new habits. I have convinced myself and hope that our experience will inspire your family.

Barb-Harmony Art Mom