Slowing The F Down

Hello, hello!

Happy New Year M’Ladies. How was your holiday season? I rested and regrouped with my family, and I’m ready for 2017. I know that after hearing from so many of you, the general consensus is that the world is happy to just put 2016 behind us.

This year, again, I made no resolutions. Nothing came to me, and I didn’t force the process.

But something DID come to me this past Sunday, and I wanted to share it with you.

As I was doing menial tasks at home this weekend, I somehow did them slowly. Normally, I race through the dishes, or bed making, or tidying up, or answering emails or paying bills. I mean, who wants to do them slowly? We wanna multi-task, get shit done! But, I went very slowly this Sunday.

And guess what?

It was game-changing.

There was this sense of calm and comfort in doing less in an hour, but doing it right. I cleaned the dinner dishes and didn’t rush the process. I didn’t rush the kids off to bed, I was fully present in my parenting. I looked at my upcoming week CAREFULLY, and made notes on what has to be done. It was almost like a conscious effort to slow the F down, and FEEL things more, rush less. Do things properly, instead of half-assed and quickly.

I realize that I often have this feeling like I’m ‘rushing through life.’ I’ve become so good at multi-tasking, that I’m unnervingly zipping through life too quickly. But really, who can blame us? We’re just trying to pack it all in. But it actually feels better to really FEEL things very slowly. Even the mundane tasks.

Am I making sense?

So I decided for 2017, I am making a conscious effort to do one thing at a time, and do them slowly. As my yoga teacher said to me when I shared my epiphany with her: ‘The chance to savor each breath, each task, each moment. It’s so simple, but so forgotten in today’s pace. One task at a time finished properly. There’s satisfaction in that.”

I have discovered a back to basics.

And after digging a little deeper, I realized there is a lot to this. There is actually a movement! An alternative to the quick fix. It’s called, not surprisingly, the Slow Fix.

You may have heard of the Slow Movement, which challenges the canard that faster is always better. Living “Slow” just means doing everything at the right speed.

Around the world, you see more and more examples of the Slow Fix in action: Couples rebooting relationships. Families ending feuds. Children resolving playground conflicts. Companies boosting sales and productivity. Designers building better stuff. Scientists making surprising breakthroughs. People are also applying the Slow Fix to global problems such as poverty and the environment.

What does the Slow Fix mean for health in a world that wants a pill for everything? It means taking time to figure out the root cause of any ailment; learning what we can from the unhurried, holistic approach of traditional forms of medicine; treating the mind and body together. Above all, it means learning to be patient.” – Carl Honoré

My neighbor said to me this summer, “I no longer stress over what I can’t control. I can’t control traffic, I can’t control long grocery lines, so I don’t even let those things get to me. I just relax in those annoying situations. What I can control and change? I work hard to do so. What I can’t? I let go.”

So, to close and honor SLOW in 2017, I give you a poem by David L. Weatherford.

SLOW DANCE. 

“Have you ever watched kids
on a merry-go-round
Or listened to the rain
slapping on the ground?

Ever followed a butterfly’s erratic flight
Or gazed at the sun into the fading night?
You better slow down
Don’t dance so fast
Time is short
The music won’t last

Do you run through each day
on the fly
When you ask “How are you?”
do you hear the reply?

When the day is done,
do you lie in your bed
With the next hundred chores
running through your head?

You’d better slow down
Don’t dance so fast
Time is short
The music won’t last

Ever told your child,
We’ll do it tomorrow
And in your haste,
not see his sorrow?

Ever lost touch,
Let a good friendship die
‘Cause you never had time
to call and say “Hi”?

You’d better slow down
Don’t dance so fast
Time is short
The music won’t last

When you run so fast to get somewhere
You miss half the fun of getting there.
When you worry and hurry through your day,
It is like an unopened gift….
Thrown away…

Life is not a race.
Do take it slower
Hear the music
Before the song is over.”

Happy 2017. Welcome back to another year, WomenOnTheFencers.