Live What You Know

Rushing through anything for any reason whatsoever creates stress and suffering and goes against the flow of Life.  The truth is that “on time” is when we get there.  We completely overlook the present moment and all the miracles found within when we rush or hurry in any way for any reason.  When we can let go and trust that all things are happening exactly as they are meant and in the time they are meant to, we can embrace the joy of truly going with the flow of Life.  These all sound like catch phrases and clichés unless we really understand what we’re turning on back on when we rush through anything.  We are turning away from life and creating problems in our head.

For years I was the chronically early type to most things and would get quite stressed over being late.  I rushed in my previous over-scheduled work life and I have even rushed like a mad-woman to countless mommy-and-me activities and kids’ birthday parties with my little ones simply out of the habit of doing so.  Yuck.  How many magic moments I rushed though makes me feel ill.  Good thing I know better than wasting any energy on regrets.  I made the connection some time back and realized I cannot continue creating the energy that comes with rushing.  It goes against everything I am.  I have been working towards new habits to reform and retrain my way of thinking that can help me slow down and flow.

I truly understand now and want to live in a way that allows me to arrive at events at exactly the moment I am meant to be there with calm pure energy that allows me to enjoy exactly what the moment has to offer.  If I get my head involved in time and rushing too much, I will miss all of the sacred stuff life has to offer (everything is scared when you take the time to be with it).  Truth be told, rushing doesn’t get you there any faster, just more stressed.  By the time you get to the next thing, the mind starts rushing you to the next and so on.  To truly be anywhere fully, you must quiet the mind created chatter that watches the clock so closely and creates reactions to it.  Of course proper planning and coordinating are necessary to function in society and arrange appointments, etc., but it is possible to eliminate rushing and still keep a tidy calendar and be courteous to others.

In most cases rushing includes resisting what has already happened.  Some little thing that made us later than we had hoped for, or some circumstance we really couldn’t control causes us to react in a panic and rush to get to the next thing because we think we are late or close to it.  If we are late, rushing only means we’re resisting it.  Resisting the moment in this way is in direct opposition to conscious living and honoring the present moment.  If we resist any part of the moment, we aren’t in it.  We are wishing for a new one or that the one we’re in were different from what already is.  We have lost trust that there is a flow to our life and that all things are as they should be.  Even when things seemingly go “wrong” we can trust that it happened for a reason.

There is nothing better than knowing you are flowing…that you are really living your moments the way you are meant to.  It feels like magic and constant hugs from the universe as it sends you messages.  Taking the time to figure out how to slow down is worth the effort.  You can bring so much meaning and joy to your days by living the moments more fully.  A few things that are helping me remember not to rush and to support a life of flowing are as follows:

• I say to myself “I have plenty of time” – this little mantra when rushing wants to take over helps time lose it’s power over us…it helps me step into the timeless realm of the moment
• I breathe and clear my head when I feel the urge to hurry
• I remind myself that “on-time” is when we get there
• Think of poetry – we have a practice we do at night (posting on this soon), it helps if you let it.  You must read poetry slowly and then you can recall it and bring it to your days.  I would much rather live life like a poem than a hectic whirlwind.
• Meditate – you can remember the stillness throughout the day and bring it to any moment.
• Invite others to the moment – I notice my little ones showing signs of my former self with hovering and waiting too early to leave or rushing to the next thing.  I now have to try to help them embrace the idea that “on-time” is when we get there.  Modeling is the best thing, but sometimes we have to talk about it.  I am sure most of us are around people who are rushing, so it is nice to just invite them to relax and enjoy things exactly as they are without rushing to the next thing.
• Saying “no” to things that don’t fit in the schedule or would cause things to be too hectic.  We can design our days to align with our values of slowing down.

Note – the whole idea behind the no-rush shift assumes that we are doing our personal best in many areas and not at all interested in using the slowing down excuse for being late and making others wait on us, etc.  I am sure this goes without saying, but just a reminder to always do our best to plan enough time not to rush.

Wishing us all the ability to shift to a slower pace that allows us to give our fullest attention to whatever is right in front of us now…listening better, looking better, touching life and everything around us more fully, seeing more deeply, understanding completely…embracing our true nature.  Now.  Sending you joy and love!