When was the last time you sat on your sofa or at the kitchen table, lit a candle and watch it flicker? When was the last time you did nothing but wrap yourself in a blanket and enjoy a cup of coffee or tea? Without watching TV or checking your social media feeds for updates to see what other people are saying and doing, but not feeling guilty for not having that extra meeting or not going to the gym.
We live in a culture of busy. We need to fill our lives with as many activities as possible to feel important and to feel that our lives have some meaning. We participate in this race to show that we are valuable members of society. We race through life because we are afraid it will pass us by, while in reality it does pass us by just because we do not slow down and really, truly appreciate the here and now. The small everyday pleasures that bring happiness. We do not stop to look at the things with loving affection. If we did, our lives would be much more colourful and peaceful and we would be able to resist this crazy merry-go-round of activities and things. We would be able to say no to the constant pursuit of more.
But we do have a choice. We don’t need to go through life on autopilot. We need to realize that we don’t need to participate in this competition where none of us will win.
We don’t need to push as hard as we can, we don’t need to be as best as we can and buy as much as we can. Instead, we can try to find some balance in our lives, try to focus on the little things and find pleasure in our very existence.
Who says you need to cram your days with all sorts of tasks to be a more fulfilled person? Try limiting your chores and find out how liberating it is not to have your days overloaded.
Don’t rush through life. Live it.
