Pace of life

My dear girlfriend one day exclaimed: “you are the man who is ten times slower than anybody else” and that made me think...

I am slow, yes.... and the way she said it, she made it sound like a bad thing, but actually, I don't agree to that.... I have my own pace of life, and so does everybody else... Besides that, I realise, I really like my own pace of life, be it sometimes slower, sometimes faster than others... it depends highly on the thing you do anyway. 

Some people are fast, but make may mistakes, some people are fast and never learn to improve what they do.... It seems to me that in the current age, speed is valued too much, so much, that it pushes away other, perhaps more important values...

I, for example like to do things slowly, carefully and thoughfully, which ensures quality and peace of mind....

Daily OM has many thoughtful texts and one of them is about one's pace of life... I would like to share it with you, since it largely matches and informs my views:

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September 13, 2010

At Your Own Pace

The Tortoise and the Hare

People take life at different speeds and one way is not necessarily superior to another.

The classic tale of the tortoise and the hare reminds us that different people take life at different speeds and that one way is not necessarily superior to another. In fact, in the story it is the slower animal that ends up arriving at the destination first. In the same way, some of us seem to move very quickly through the issues and obstacles we all face in our lives. Others need long periods of time to process their feelings and move into new states of awareness. For those of us who perceive ourselves as moving quickly, it can be painful and exasperating to deal with someone else’s slower pace. Yet, just like the tortoise and the hare, we all arrive at the same destination, together, eventually.

People who take their time with things are probably in the minority in most of the world today. We live in a time when speed and productivity are valued above almost anything else. Therefore, people who flow at a slower pace are out of sync with the world and are often pestered and prodded to go faster and do more. This can be not only frustrating but also counterproductive because the stress of being pushed to move faster than one is able to move actually slows progress. On the other hand, if a person’s style is honored and supported, they will find their way in their own time and, just like the tortoise, they might just beat the speedier, more easily distracted person to the finish line.

It’s important to remember that we are not actually in a race to get somewhere ahead of someone else, and it is difficult to judge by appearances whether one person has made more progress than another. Whether you count yourself among the fast movers or as one of the slower folks, we can all benefit from respecting the pace that those around us choose for themselves. This way, we can keep our eyes on our own journey, knowing that we will all end up together in the end.

Source: Daily OM

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Now, it is a bit fuzzy and gets a bit down the track of woolly spiritual contemplations, which is not always my cup of tea, but there are things in it I like very much. 

I don't know if we end up at the same destination together/we end up together in the end, but to me, that is not the important point. The main point to me is that our attention is drawn towards the realisation that people live their lives at a different pace, and that we should respect one another's pace. To me it often seems that a certain pace, often together with a lifestyle, is forced upon me (or others) and I dislike that very much.

To me there is no correct pace but your own, and in relation to others, you will sometimes have to discuss the pace in which things are done together...

Another idea that is appealing to me is the idea that life is not a race.... it is when you choose to race, it is not when you don't...

If, as the author of this Daily OM states, we all should end up at the same destination, life indeed could be considered some kind of race, but to me, we all rather seem to go to our own destination, and the way to get there is a highly personal one, and trying to live life at another pace than your own, whether faster or slower, seems to me unhealthy...

I like the way reading this made me think about and appreciate my own pace of life, and I hope you will do so too :-)

o_d