The Importance of Slowing Down

“Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” 

Sometimes we get distracted and weighed down by the pressures of life — working, paying bills, keeping hungry mouths fed, etc. And those stresses keep us from relaxing and enjoying the finer things in life.
 
I almost missed out on a night of fun because I was too busy mulling over a tough day’s busyness. I’m a task person, and I like to be busy — to the point that I sometimes have a hard time relaxing. After a taxing day at work, I joined my husband, his mom, and a friend for an outing to an Arizona Diamondbacks baseball game. But my brain was still on my work and all of the things I needed to do at home.
 
I fought a mental battle much of the first part of the game. In fact, I missed seeing us on the Jumbotron because I was too preoccupied. My mother-in-law hadn’t been to a Dbacks game before, and as she was taking in the ballpark, she saw our small group on the big screen.
 
I had to disengage my brain in order to be truly present at the game. Once I finally did that, I enjoyed the time with my loved ones, making memories. And I liked watching my mother-in-law delight in her new experience.
 
The whole ordeal brought to mind the movie “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off,” my favorite flick for many years. Maybe because it reminded me to slow down. As Ferris said, “Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.”
 
I don’t want to miss it. I want to savor it.

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