Light fades. What do you have left?

Flecks of starlight.

Flash of sunlight catching the edge of a storm cloud at the end of day.

A raindrop rolling down glass.

Sound fades. What do you have left?

Waves on a beach.

Kids laughter.

A bird call.

Who would catch you if you fell?

In the end, even leaves catch each other.

Manifesto
11. Every day do something for someone else.
18. Every day express love. Some people need to hear it. Most people need to see it. Don’t take it for granted.
20. Every day say thank you.

Wisely, and slow. They stumble that run fast.
– William Shakespeare

Speed kills. We hear this message repeatedly – driving at excessive speed kills people. The statistics back-up this message. Speeding is a serious road safety and major public health issue in our country. Every time we choose to speed we’re taking a risk. We know the potential consequences. If we don’t slow down we can expect someone or something will make us do it. There are signs along the road to remind us to slow down but do we pay heed to them? Some do and they continue on their journey. Others are not so fortunate and their journey comes to an abrupt and tragic end.

Living a life where we are constantly speeding (in terms of the pace of our lives) can also kill us. Only this type of speeding is more insidious – it takes longer and it works from the inside-out. We miss so much when we buy into the frenetic lifestyle that is the norm today. Everything is getting faster and faster. We keep going faster to try to keep up. We feel we’re a failure if we can’t. Making the decision to not buy into this craziness doesn’t seem a viable option and we ignore all the signs telling us its time to slow down.

I realised over the last few days how important it is to make room for down time in my life – and not once in a while, but regularly. It can take on many different forms and doesn’t involve having to physically go away anywhere.

Even though my head knows all this stuff making the necessary choices to bring about change is harder to do. I keep thinking “if only I had more time”.  In reality what would I do differently with this extra time that I couldn’t put in place now.

I have enjoyed my break away from my every day routines and pressures. I felt so lucky to have had this opportunity. While I was away I felt more alive and more inspired. I slept well, went for walks, ate well, and generally chilled. I was happy and I felt at peace. Now my challenge is to continue to do this while at home and not wait for the signs telling me to slow down or else …

Manifesto
06. Every day you make choices.
29. Every day eat, drink, rest, work, exercise, play, love, create for your own good. And the good of others.
36. Every day be still. Connect to your inner being. Listen and be guided by it.