Slow and Steady

I’ve been learning that slowing down is an essential ingredient for a conscious life, an aware life and an authentic life. It is necessary to slow down enough to really pay attention in the moment and really listen to the inner Voice that is guiding us. Mistakes can be greatly reduced, if not mostly eliminated in this way. Patience and consistency are also part of this slower pace. Not pushing things or rushing, but rather trusting life enough to not react in a frantic way for fear of losing an opportunity.

Trust means there is no fear of loss, for if one opportunity disappears, another, usually grander one will appear in its place. But one has to be willing to trust the unseen and depend solely on outer appearances.

Slowness is a sign of trust. I once heard someone say that a true spiritual warrior is calm and ruthless.  The calm so that one is in a state of presence and like a cat can spring to action when action is called for and only then; and ruthless in that one brings 100% of attention, energy and skills to the the situation. Again, I think of a cat. They move slowly and luxuriously when they can, and then spring into highly focused and aggressive action when they are hunting. When they’re sleeping, they really sleep, but they’re ears are designed like a radar device tuning into their environment. They also have a high sense of smell and kinesthetic sensitivity so that they can move instantaneously into a state of high alertness when called for.

I’m learning to be more patient and trust when things don’t move as fast as I’d like. Not always easy since I’ve always been impatient with life and with others. Slowing down brings inner peace into the moment and it means not following the rapid train of thoughts into whatever dark alley they wander. 

Being present means responding, not reacting to what is, in the moment. Reacting comes from monkey mind, which is often motivated by fear of losing what we have or not getting what we want. Responding comes from a deeper place of listening to what is and doing what is appropriate in the situation. Responding is guided by intuition and our Higher Self which can see the bigger picture or Highest Good in a situation. It tells us to move this way or that to serve and benefit the most people connected with a specific situation. It’s truly a lovely way to live and feels far more natural than running around like a rat in a maze desperately trying to find the cheese. It’s not about the cheese, it’s about what is unfolding all along the way.

There is simply no benefit to rushing or pushing through life with an agenda to get ours, so to speak. Rather it’s about surrender to being one instrument in the whole orchestra and following the movements and clues of the conductor so our instrument will contribute to the symphony.