Twitter, Notes and Sacred Wildflowers
Social media versus the sanctity of nature, where I am the algorithm.
ON THE DAY that Substack launched its social media feed called Notes, the woods here in Vermont were exploding in the crimson flowers of hazelnut. Although Notes had drafted me in the war for your attention (and for mine), I opted instead for those tiny spring fireworks on their twigs.
Like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and their ilk, Notes is a fusillade of information — in this case a feed generated by Substack writers. Its intent is to enhance Substack’s lofty mission: connecting independent writers and readers. Hard to argue with that.
Even so, I am cautious about this new battlefront in the digital invasion of our brains. Like many of you, I strive to keep people and nature centered and lofty in my life. Instead of consulting the myriad of self-help books about coping with the digital life — about how the internet has addled our brains for distraction and about the myths of digital productivity and goodness — my default redress is simple: Go outside. Meet those little red flowers. Walk. Sit. Think. Write.
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