Earlier this year, I invited the community to join me for a social media-free February.

A month of human connection and meaningful and messy conversations. 28 days to be together and see what happens when we’re not constantly curating a version of our lives for mass consumption.

I even asked my fellow candidates to join me, and that certainly generated some excitement. One TV news anchor joked that I was “politely asking my competitors to ‘touch grass.’” Haha!

Well, the other candidates didn’t take me up on the offer. Their response was that it would be bad for their campaign, bad for business, not right for them. I get it! Everyone is in this race for different reasons, and what works for me might not work for everyone.

That’s why I was surprised and really encouraged by how many others decided to join me — neighbors, friends, and supporters who told me they traded scrolling for a walk, a phone call, or a new hobby.

And here’s what’s really magical. We made things — beautiful things — together! Here are a few of the marvelous creations people made during our Month Offline.

Listen to Markus's original song “Splitting Atoms” that he wrote for the Nuclear Weapons Now event.

Check out the smiles at our Dancing for Democracy Event with Mike and Nastasya.

Remember the fun of the Tri-Town Dems Family Fun Day (and the cleanup afterwards!)

Behold Brenda's intricately beaded ICE whistle.

And applaud for Joel and Laura’s magical “A Midsummer Night’s Dream”!

My heart is full looking back at these pictures, and now I want to know how you spent your month offline. So please — reach out through the website, tell me if you were able to try anything new, and let me know if I can share your creation with our community. I’d love to highlight your story with our supporters.

Thanks for taking a couple of minutes to share what changed (or what didn’t) when you logged off.

On Beauty and Connection

“We need to tell our children these stories.”