PUMP THE BRAKES

Today's Quote:
For fast acting relief, try slowing down.
Lily Tomlin

Life isn't a race where the first over the finish line is "the winner." If it were, I'd still do my best to be nearest to the back of the pack as I could manage without standing still. I wouldn't be focused on the finish line, as if nothing else existed. While traveling, I'd be soaking up the sights... breathing as deeply as possible... and paying some kind of homage to the ending of one phase, before beginning the next. 

Many of us rush as if our final destination is the only thing of any value, and miss the importance of getting there. We sit at red lights or stand in lines as if that is some sort of punishment. Being forced to take turns in an orderly fashion wads some of us up. I never mind the pauses, unless the person behind me is impatient. I don't reward bad behavior by increasing my speed to accommodate any inflated ego that's pushing against my backside. The urge to slow down out of spite comes and goes. I smile and keep my steady pace.

The minute you allow any negative person or emotion to dictate your actions they are the master. I've learned from past experience that when there is a true master, other than me, then my role is slave. Been there.... done that.... the shirt got wayyyyy too tight. I spend my time now learning to master myself.

I gave up the race to please others at any cost. I pumped my brakes. I learned to value my feelings. I learned to protect my soul. And I'm still learning. Slowing to a speed that didn't make me dizzy solved a lot of my problems. I view any pause between tasks as a reward, not a punishment.

Patience is a virtue I have in abundance... one of the very few that I possess. I learned it the hard way. I came to understand that the most brutal lessons leave the best rewards behind. Most of my major mistakes came from rushing into things. The fact that I was also rushing from something doesn't change facts.

Two wrongs don't ever make anything right. One prison is pretty much like any other. With me the jailers changed, but I remained a prisoner until I set myself free. And staying free is my only stationary destination nowadays. Traveling too fast could get me caught up in the flow of traffic and lead me places I never wanted to be. Leaving room to adjust to changing situations is what keeps me safe from major pile ups.

Slow down... pump the brakes... smell the roses... and place as much value on where you're at as given to any hoped for destination. Destinations come and go; our only guaranteed position is the moment to moment ones along the way. Treasure them, or they might as well not have occurred at all. And as always.... think about it.... let it ride... then decide!!!!