The sound of one hand slowing down

I had this epiphany yesterday:

Slow down.

Relax. Don’t rush from problem to problem.

The world won’t end if you take an extra five minutes to respond to something.

I felt calmer and less stressed out when I recognized this and actually slowed down.

It lasted about an hour before life said, “F*ck you, no. Get over here and deal with this now!”

It was nice while it lasted, and I’m constantly struggling to find my way back to that state of mind…

 

So much fleeting beauty, so little time…

I’ve been trying to find more beauty and calm in the world, especially right before heading into the crucible of the day job.

And in making that effort, I’ve succeeded in finding moments I want to capture.

Usually, as a photograph.

When I don’t have a camera.

Or do, but can’t take a photo.

Such as when I’m driving.

I had many such moments today.

Beauty that made me smile and gave me hope for the world.

Even if for just a fleeting moment.

But I had only one moment where I had a camera in hand.

If my cell phone counts as a camera.

(Is that a snobbish attitude to have about cell phone cameras? Probably, but I don’t care.)

The dew on this heather caught my eye while I was psyching up myself to get in the car and go to work.

And I thought it was beautiful and wanted to capture some of that beauty and carry it away with me to what promised to be another long day.

So I did.

I’m not sure if a cell phone camera (or screen, if you’re viewing this on a phone) does this moment justice, but it serves as an excellent bookmark for my memory.

And a zoom in for those with small screens.