Are You Going Too Fast?
Make Your Life Memorable
Have you ever been to a NASCAR race or watched one on TV? The cars, these super machines of speed, fly around the tracks at speeds of sometimes over 200 MPH. These hyped up bunches of steel drive so fast, they can barely see the road in front of them, never mind what is around them.
The crowd goes by them in a blur, the trees are un-recognizable at best. The only thing they can see are the other cars going just as fast as they are. In order to see the things around them, they must slow down to speeds so that their eyes can catch up to their brains in order to see what they are missing... the beautiful things.
Sometimes, it is the same with life. People tend to go warp speed and never realize that life, their life, is passing by right before their eyes. They are missing out on beautiful things that are right in front of them and all around them because they move so quickly. From the moment they wake up, they take a shower at warp speed, get ready at a million miles an hour, and then rush out the door and speed to work.
They come home after work and eat a quick dinner, maybe play with the kids for a few moments and then off to bed... maybe taking a couple minutes to read the paper or watch the news, but for the most part, everything whisks by at the speed of light.
Our lives are meant for so much more than that. We are only on this earth for a short period of time and if we compare our lives to that of the millions or even billions of years past, then we would realize that our time here is like that of a blink of an eye. And by the time we start to look at our lives, in our latter part of our lives, we realize that we really did not accomplish everything we wanted because we never took the time.
Life is meant to be enjoyed. It is meant to be peaceful and full of bliss. We should take some time out of every day and be grateful for everything and everyone in our lives. In some instances, we are moving way too fast to even give a please or a thank you. We should stop once in a while and just look around with admiration that yes, our lives are beautiful.
Slow down so that you can look at the flowers around you, or see how beautiful color the sky is... or how about just looking at a sunset from time to time? Think about your last meal you ate. Did you taste it? Did you savor it? Or did you just gulp it down quick along with your drink because the next thing on your agenda was pushing at you?
Do you have children? It is amazing how fast they grow, right? You probably remember when they were born, in the hospital all swaddled up in a blanket, feeding them and burping them. And in an instant, they are 10, 15, or even older.
Think about this... Y2K was 11 years ago... 9-11 was almost a decade ago. Time moves quickly, but we do not have to.
I read a quote some time ago and it said something like... "Even seeds take the time to push through what seems to be tons of dirt, only to grow into a beautiful flower."
You see, in order to become something beautiful in every way, it takes time, it takes nurturing and being in the right environment. We have to be diligent on our journey and realize that fast is not always better.
If you just took a good look at your life, and this is not judgmental by any stretch of the imagination, I bet you can see areas that you can improve, if you just slowed down.
"Smell the coffee" is one of my favorite cliche's... just stop and reflect on your day or your issues. Take time to think about things and not make hasty decisions.
I am a 42 year old man and my life was at warp speed for 38 years. From the time I was born, it was always go,go,go. I have learned, in the past 4 years, the ability to see the little things and slow my race car down to a moderate speed so I never miss a thing. I have equipped my car with a governor in the engine so that when my mind wants to fly, the governor will not let it go past 55. I will enjoy life and I will do it on life's speed, not warp speed.
Cherish each and every day as if it were your last. Let's be honest here... we are on the way to dying... a morbid fact, but a fact it is. Do you not want to enjoy it while you are standing and breathing? I know I do.
Copyright © 2011 Rich Barnes
Thank you for taking the time out and reading this. I truly appreciate it.
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