Slow Yourself Down
The moment we keep running past
Last week we talked about “not yet.”
That quiet engine that keeps many of our lives moving in a certain direction.
Not enough yet.
Not there yet.
Not ready yet.
And we ended with a question.
If nothing were missing right now… what would you build?
Not as something to intellectualize.
Just something to notice.
I was out walking my dogs this morning. I do it every day. Sometimes several times a day.
And even on that walk I noticed something.
A thought popped in:
“Oh — you have to finish your article.”
Now I’m not saying that thought isn’t worthy of attention.
But it made me smile.
Because it’s the same movement.
The mind leaving here for somewhere else.
And it’s actually kind of fun to notice.
You can listen to it.
But does it take over your whole experience?
Or is it just something passing through?
So I paused for a moment.
And noticed what was here.
Nothing is missing.
Not intellectually.
Not conceptually.
Actually.
Breathing is happening.
Life is moving.
Awareness is here.
This is the only place life can ever happen.
And it becomes interesting to watch how quickly the mind wants to leave again.
The next plan.
The next improvement.
The next thing to fix.
The next thing to solve.
The next thing to check off the list.
But this isn’t because anything’s wrong.
That’s just what minds do.
It reminds me of something most of us have experienced with our phones.
You’re using it and suddenly things start acting strange.
Apps keep spinning.
Something won’t load.
The screen freezes.
So you start poking around trying to figure out what’s wrong.
Closing apps.
Opening settings.
Trying different things.
And sometimes none of it works.
Until you finally do the one thing that fixes everything.
You reset the phone.
And when it turns back on…
everything works again.
We work the same way.
Not by figuring everything out.
Just by slowing down for a moment.
Underneath all that movement there’s something very simple.
Very subtle.
Nothing is missing here.
And it’s the very moment we spend most of our lives running past.
I remember being in Hawaii a couple of years ago in Hanalei. I walked into a little coffee shop and their whole brand was built around one phrase.
Slow yourself down.
It was on the walls.
On the t-shirts.
On the stickers.
Later I learned it came from a surfer who built a company around that reminder.
Slow yourself down.
Not just physically.
Internally.
Notice how busy things can get in your own mind.
Because the moment we keep running past…
is this one.
Which makes last week’s question land a little differently.
If nothing were missing right now… what would you build?
When the mind settles and you actually notice that…
something interesting happens.
You’re no longer trying to complete yourself.
You’re already here.
And from that place a different kind of question begins to appear.
What would you love to explore?
Not from striving.
Not from trying to become someone.
Just from being.
And allowing what wants to move through you…
to move.
What might that be?
And if I’m being honest, that’s exactly what happened while writing this.
I usually have these articles finished days in advance.
Tonight I noticed a little tension creeping in.
You’re late. This should already be done.
Same old movement.
So I paused.
Hard reset.
And from there the words just started to flow.
Funny how that works.
👣 – B