Striving for Slow (Part One)
We are taught to measure the success of our lives against the extraordinary and unbelievable. Our journey as a being on this earth is stretched and laid out alongside those whose drive to excel cannot be replicated. Those who equate difficulty with value have created the framework we use to plot our course.
What if my deepest desire is to move with ease among the moments that come my way?
What if the mission that propels me forward with passion is to achieve a quiet freedom that calls to me from a time yet to come?
What if I was able to slow down to a pace so tranquil that I could sense the space between two moments and hold the air between them?
What if instead of a solid path beneath my feet, I am guided by a moonlit cloud floating in my heart?
If I were to touch the edges of these dreams, how would that be held up in comparison?
The delicate beauty of a single strand of wheat held up to the sun is no match for a gold medal on a pedestal.
There is a version of humanity where the only requirement is merely surviving the seasons. Finding daily nourishment and access to sustainable shelter is impressive and worthy of celebration.
Ancient rituals and ceremonies were created to mark the fact that time and storms had passed but you had not.
Community gatherings are meant to be ubiquitous and sacred simultaneously.
Acapella songs escaping your heart through your voice are received unaltered as medicine.
If all you manage to do today is bear witness to the setting sun, consider that your love letter to the sky. Your attention is the most precious gift on this earth. Your eyes can only absorb what is in their field of vision, and what an honour it is to be captured in your gaze.
One day, you will rise up and greet the day with the strength to venture out again. You may even look into the eyes of a stranger and flash a smile that reassures them that their gaze is a gift. What an incredible feat it is to share a moment with someone in this time when most are looking ahead at the next destination.
The weight of being in a body on this earth is heavier when you don't take the time to digest it. Some go their entire lives only floating through the experience, so allow yourself to sink into the sensations.
Feel the textured sheets against your skin.
Sense where the cushions dip beneath you.
Close your eyes to feel the crisp air on your cheeks.
Experience the shift in your energy when you touch the one you love.
Memorize the scent of their skin.
Meet your own eyes in the mirror and trace the contours of your face.
Listen to someone breathe as they are sleeping.
Engage with every interaction in your daily life through the lens of someone who isn't here forever. Fill yourself up with a plethora of tiny joyful things from where you are in this moment.
