You want some Fries with that Shake?

Fast food. Fast cars. Fast service. Rapid refund. Speedy Check-out. Direct TV. High Speed Internet. Instant Photos.  Snapchat. That’s right, people seem to have but one gear-HIGH.  Everything and I mean, everything needs to be done at neck-breaking speeds!  Are we there yet? Is it over yet? Is it Friday yet? We wish our lives away.

                                                                                    That fast enough for you? 

Don’t get me wrong, I am in the boat with you.  Let me hurry and eat so I can…do dishes, laundry or any of the bazillion things I might have on the list.  We run here and there to squeeze as much as we can out of life, but are we really enjoying it?  Must we jump from mountain top to mountain top to avoid anything that might give us a moment’s reprieve?

BORED.  BORED. BORED.  Anyone with children has heard this declaration on most likely multiple occasions.  We live in such an entertainment society that people have a hard time with “down” time.  You see them everywhere, they have to be multi-tasking at all times, as if it some contest to see who can do the most at one time.

 Patience is at an all-time low.   Do I have to wait in line? 10 minutes in the microwave?   Let me skip to the end of the book.  Can we skim through the boring parts of the movie and get to the good stuff?  I, for one, would love to know how you can tell the difference between the “good” and “boring” stuff, while you are zipping through the images at lightning speed. 

Is this blog about finished or am I going to be reading it for the rest of my life?  You were thinking it, but hey, it is almost over, so hang in there! 

We all need to learn to slow down and savor all of life’s moments, even the BORING ones.  If we don’t have the mundane, sometimes even painful moments, then we won’t truly appreciate the amazing ones. 

 Take a deep breath, spend some time doing nothing at all and if you are feeling extremely adventurous, spend some time “unplugged”.  You might be surprised at the freedom you feel when you are alone with your thoughts and no one is able to disturb you. 

I find that writing affords me the opportunity to unwind and for just a few moments, get off the “Great American Scream Machine” (also known as “Life in these United States”).  

 

Ooops, got a call, gotta run!  (Just Kidding…that was the TV…or maybe the microwave…or the doorbell… Who knows?)

Just a few questions:

What do you do to find "down" time?

What is something that you are impatient about?

Do you stop and enjoy life’s simple pleasures?

What is something that has made your life simpler yet more complicated at the same time?

                                   Wishing you and your family a fantastic week, with maybe a power outage or two! 

~Lisa M. Crosby