The Art of Slowing Down

It has been one of those weeks, the one where there is a lot happening and time just flows differently.

Days blend together as I go from coding to writing to designing. I run from one to the next and even when I take a break, I fall back to reading. I am right in the middle of Eldest, the second book of the Inheritance Cycle. I couldn't resist starting the book after finishing Eragon last weekend.

I have been finding myself in this state for quite a while. This got accentuated more when decided to take on an additional challenge last week, a project to consume my nights & weekends. Little did I realize the magnitude of my commitment in contrast to the pre-existing pursuits I already had with writing and building Coffee.

It's strange, the way, in moments like these, that you find the lesson you need to learn in the most oddest of places. Of course, I won't say books are odd places to find lessons, them being the source of our knowledge and all. What I mean is that right at this moment, as I was grappling this conundrum, I came across this excerpt in Eldest:

The gap in their conversation stretched longer and longer. Ten minutes passed … half an hour … then an hour. It reached the point where Eragon began to measure the elapsed time by the sun’s progress. At first his mind buzzed with questions and thoughts, but those eventually subsided into calm acceptance. He enjoyed just observing the day.

I thought of the last time I just enjoyed observing the day, a time when I had let my thoughts run their course, a time when I sat down and just tracked the sun's journey across the sky. The closest I have come to this is when I make my cup of morning coffee. Ever since I learnt how to use the filter, I take my time to brew the perfect cup and just savor the taste of freshly brewed filter coffee. But then I am back in the hustle and bustle of the day.

There a few moments of lucidity when I became aware of the state of my mind. I observe the train of thought fly by, I cannot stop it. I see there is a long journey ahead. I try to take a breath and become aware. Try to appreciate the few moments before I lose myself in my thoughts again.

"DO OR DO NOT. THERE IS NO TRY"
~ Yoda

And so I find myself sucked into the wormhole.

Observe!

I believe what I need to do is just slow down. Start with one moment. Relax. Take a breath. Observe everything around me.

Initially the feeling is foreign. I resist as a barrage of thoughts run through my head. I wonder why thoughts never walk, why are they always in a hurry. Do they need to go somewhere? Where is their supposed destination? The pot at the end of the rainbow?! But then I am aware of moment, I see the ticking of the clock, the seconds' hand in that one moment where it is briefly still.

I am aware. I am here.

Haste makes waste

Nothing good ever comes out in haste. Words said in haste lack tact and cause more harm than good. Food eaten in haste make us feel bloated. Vehicles driven in haste increase the likelihood of accidents. When we're in a hurry to complete something, we overlook important details, make errors, or create problems that require additional time and effort to fix.

Why are we always in haste?

Life is always a series of journeys of getting from point A to point B. When we slow down and appreciate the little things: the sunrise, the morning coffee, the walk to work, a homecooked lunch, the smell of rain, we might finally understand that what we are in haste for has always been there with us all along.

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