Slow the fuck down and take it all in. You’re missing so much shit when you’re always in your head. Breath. Look around. Notice what’s around you.
I went for a morning walk today and decided to try a new path. There’s a coffee shop up the road from me and I was curious about how far away it was. It was almost the perfect halfway point of my 45 minutes walk, which is sick because now I know I can walk there with ease, but that’s not what this blog is about.
On that morning walk, I discovered so many cool things I’ve never noticed on my drives through the city streets. I was shown just how distracted you can be and how much you can miss when you’re always focused on yourself.
I discovered a beautiful park and memorial with great sunlit seating, I saw a convenient bank I never knew about, another great seating area, a gorgeous church, and honestly just an overall nice walking path. Needless to say, I was pretty hyped at 8 AM.
I ouldn’t believe how much I’ve missed – I’ve been driving this way every morning on my way to work and never saw any of it. Of course, you can’t always be super vigilant and taking in all these details when you’re driving, but I feel this lesson applies in the broader sense.
We rarely take the time to truly take in all that is around us. We go to coffee shops, order, find a seat, and lock in. We go to bars, grab a drink, then sit in the corner with our friends. Our daily drives are so routine, we could do it blindfolded. But how often are you taking everything in? Do you ever listen to all the sounds, see all the unique people around you, all the nature and infrastructure on those streets you know so well? I’d guess probably not.
We should all try to slow it down a little and take it all in. Your thoughts can run amok and your focus can get so set on the task at hand that you fail to be present. When you go somewhere new and that anxiety starts to arise, slow down, breathe, take it all in. Everything will be fine. Notice the little things you’ve ignored all these times you’ve gone down these streets. Appreciate everything that’s happening around you.
You may be surprised at what you find when you jut slow down.
October 22, 2024
