Minimising hurry is not about laziness or dropping all ambition. It's about reclaiming the space to actually experience your life instead of just racing through it. In a world that glorifies hustle culture, choosing to be slow and steady almost feels like rebellion but it's one of the most powerful ways I've found to live more fully.
Modern life trains us to always be on the move. The constant notifications from our devices, deadlines looming and pressure from every angle. We are taught to equate success with speed and stillness with stagnation.
Sadly, I still have these teachings embedded in me because just last week, I was on a rollercoaster. Running from one examination hall to another, preparing crafts for said exams and everything in between. Prior to last week, my days were filled with preparation as I solely wanted to focus on acing the exams that 89% of my predecessors failed. Basically, there was no time for slacking or remaining still.
On different occasions, my body sent signals for me to calm down but heck if I listened to any of those warnings. I was on a roll. Now, the professional exams have come and gone but guess who's still trying to recuperate amidst illness? Me of course.
I'm not writing this post because I've got it all figured out. I am in fact writing the post because it took a dearest friend reminding me that resting and recuperating doesn't equal laziness before I could realize that I was still running on adrenaline and needed to deliberately slow down. So, for a couple of days now, I've been resting; meditating, reading books or watching movies whenever I feel like it, and in these days, I realised a couple of things.
First, when we're not rushing, living in the present is possible. With me, there's always the next exam or the next crochet projects and because of this, I'm always thinking of the future (which is a great thing to do) but not at the cost of the present. Living in the present opens us to the subtle things we tend to miss whenever we're in a hurry, just like the beautiful sunrise I saw this morning.
Creativity and work also improve when we’re not in a haste and this is one of my surprising discoveries. I've always attributed slowing down with less output but I've noticed this particularly with my crochet projects. When I'm in a hurry, my crochet pieces tend to look basic and haphazardly made but with the right amount of patience and clarity, crochet masterpieces are created. There’s really no cheating nature.
Finally, when we minimise hurry, good health follows naturally. Our bodies are not designed for continuous acceleration. Continuous hurry contributes to everything from digestive issues to weakened immune systems and even anxiety. When we're not in a hurry, everything from our eating habits to our sleep patterns are better aligned because our nervous system isn't in a state of constant urgency.
I’d like to conclude by saying that minimising hurry doesnt mean giving up. It is about choosing to be rooted in the present and finding genuine fulfilment. Truth is, the world wont stop spinning but life feels greatly richer when we stop trying to outrun it.
This post was written in response to the #kiss writing ideas for the week which can be found here. Do not hesitate to turn in your entries.
Images used belong to me and were taken with my mobile device, except stated otherwise.
