Don't Hurry

There is no reason to hurry through life to reach those heights of achievement associated with the paths we have chosen. Everything seems to be rushed in our world today. We are far more attentive to the dramatic and intense experiences that present themselves than to the moments when nothing seems to be happening. We feel a need to cram as much into every moment as we possibly can. We actually compete with each other to demonstrate how busy we are. The busier we are the more important our position. Of course this is not the case. Enjoying and fully experiencing the journey of life is more important than getting to the top and conquering goals. There are lessons we can learn during the seemingly insignificant moments that cannot be taught at any other time.

Our lives are guided by natural rhythms that are unique to each of us. Soren Kierkegaard once said that “Most people pursue pleasure with such breathless haste that they hurry past it.” The truth is that life is a journey made up of processes that cannot be altered by force. Time is a great equalizer which sweeps away the importance of events that seemed to be so critical when we were engaged in them. Delight lives within our own hearts. We can't help but encounter delight in the small moments when we give them our unconditional attention.

It is important to remember that everything which happens in life will occur in its own time. There is no rush. We begin to connect with all that has gone unnoticed when we celebrate the ordinary moments in life. The secret is becoming patient enough to take pleasure in life’s unfolding.

Finding Delight

I was having an especially difficult time adjusting to my life as a divorced man in early recovery many years ago. My mind was racing, my new job was confusing and I was filled with regret and doubt. It was a beautiful mid spring day in Champaign, Illinois and I decided to get out of the office and take a walk on the downtown mall. Just as I rounded the corner a voice greeted me with a cheerful "How-do" (An old Midwestern hello). I looked up to see a weathered homeless man sitting on a bench in the middle of what used to be the main street. "Hello", I said. He went on..."You know, I used to sit here when this was a street and I would watch the cars go up one side of the road and back down the other. Now I get to sit here and watch the people just walk and talk and walk up one side of this mall and down the other side." I looked at him blankly and said "Oh?". He grinned toothlessly with warm understanding eyes and said words that I have never forgotten. "I delight in it...I delight in it". My spirits lifted. I noticed that the air was cleaned with a morning shower and the bright prairie sun glistened. He grasped what I had failed to grasp. He understood how simply delightful even the most simple things can be...and are.

Meister Eckhart, the thirteenth century Dominican mystic theologian said "wisdom consists in doing the next thing that you have to do, doing it with your whole heart, and finding delight in doing it". Such wisdom escapes us in our daily journey all too often. The picture that I attached to the blog is one that I took on a recent trip to Maui. It is on a road that leads to a delightful part of the island that is less visited than the other parts. Well worth the slow and winding trip with multiple stops and pullovers. No hurry, no worries...just hang loose. Delight in it today.