This is why I enjoy the cold. I enjoy feeling my ears and my finger turn numb, I enjoy the chattering of my teeth, I enjoy the goosebumps appearing on my skin, but mostly I enjoy the sensation of feeling real. When I am warm, I am comfortable and I hate being comfortable. With discomfort your body constantly reminds you through pain, or sensations, that you are conscious and alive. When I am comfortable it is much easier for me to drift off to a place of non-being, a place where most people now spend most of their days. It has become so easy to become less aware of our bodies, of our physical selves and to focus only on the screen in front of us.
I can spend hours searching the web, watching television and/or virtually chatting with my friends and not even be aware of the time passing. It is only when my body reminds me, with a rumble of the stomach or a droop of the eyelids, that I remember that I am real and that I have needs.
The internet is not tangible, you can't hold it, feel it, smell it, or even comprehend its size or capacity. Yet we spend hours, days, even years trying to discover how we can use it to our advantage. Whether this means online shopping, connecting with people or making a name for ourselves, we try every day to find meaning in the screen, and ultimately in our own existences.
It's so easy to lose yourself in digital age. I get lost too sometimes, but the difference is when I walk outside and feel a sharp wind on my back I realize that this is my life, not my Facebook page, or my email inbox. When I walk outside and embrace the cold my body comes back to me. As long as I still have the reactions I know I'm still living, I'm still here and I still have a chance.
