Taking Things Slower Has Benefits

Often it seems that life is fast-paced. Traveling quickly by jet aircraft and preparing food in a microwave oven are two examples of things getting done much quicker, at a faster pace, than was true long ago. But, I think taking things slower has benefits in at least some ways.

Travel
Recently I traveled from Lexington, Kentucky to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and back on a Greyhound bus. Most persons probably would have flown. But the prices and limited travel times (at least for budget airlines) led me to go via the bus.

I found the bus trip relaxing in some ways. I met many nice, interesting persons, enjoyed seeing the scenery, took time to read, did some editing work to revise a book I'd published shortly before the trip, etc. I doubt that I would have enjoyed a flight as much. I even slept a significant amount on the approximately 20 hours each way trip, though not as much as I'd planned.

I honesty think that, assuming I didn't get seasick, I might even enjoy devoting a few days to traveling on a ship across the Atlantic Ocean to Europe. Centuries ago, before steamships, when folks like Benjamin Franklin were on ships with sails, it might have taken a month or longer to sail across the ocean. I can visualize persons reading, meeting new friends, writing articles or books, and engaging in deep thoughts to gain new insights, as well as enjoying some nice relaxation, among many other activities.

Yes, I am confident there can be big advantages sometimes to taking travel a bit slower. I know I can see and enjoy my neighborhood, city, etc., more when I am walking or bicycling than when I am traveling in a car or on a bus.

Food Preparation
I love my microwave oven, which can prepare a lot of tasty food quickly. It likely even does some foods better than "conventional" cooking. I would not want to go back to the days when someone may have devoted a big part of a day to preparing food for a family, doing things like baking bread from scratch. But I am confident that old-fashioned cooking is better in many ways.

Forgive me for being nostalgic, but I have fond memories of enjoying a potato baked by my great grandmother in the coals of a fireplace. I remember the various homemade "delicacies" that my mom and grandmother prepared from scratch. And I myself still frequently soak pinto beans overnight; then, I devote a couple of hours to cooking them on the stove, while I busy myself doing reading, writing, browsing the Internet, sorting papers, etc., as they cook.

Multitasking
Many persons today seem to carry a cell phone with them almost everywhere and seem the majority of the time to be conversing with someone on it or playing games on it, etc. At the same time, they may be shopping, driving, baby-sitting children, etc. Maybe I'm wrong, but I think the huge amount of multitasking that takes place in modern society is a contributing factor toward many headaches, ulcers, and other illnesses.

Personally, I try to take things slower. I rarely carry my cellphone with me, and I seldom use it when I do. I try to do one thing at a time and to focus on it, rather than multitasking, with some exceptions such as cooking beans as I mentioned earlier, which aren't really a distraction as long as I set a timer for them (and set the timer near the door, so I can put them out of mind, relatively confident I won't go out and forget them).

Of course, I am single and not a parent. It may be impossible to be a parent and not multitask. Even I do a significant amount of multitasking. But I think that if most of us reduce the quantity of our multitasking, when reasonably feasible, our lives would improve.

Concluding Thoughts
Persons such as the Mennonites and Amish who have strong morals, good work ethics, and avoid using many modern inventions may have the right idea in some ways. A lot of people seem to go deeply into debt, then get stressed out working two or three jobs to pay for labor-saving devices or a second home or a boat.

And if we go slower, taking more time to talk to others and to listen to them, maybe we would do a better job of getting along with others. Personally, I am confident that we could resolve all (or at least most) conflicts much more fairly and peacefully if we took time to communicate openly and honestly and to sincerely listen to the points of view of others, to try to understand their side(s) of the issue(s), and to seek the right solution.

Maybe we all could sincerely be conscientious objectors. On the Philadelphia trip I mentioned earlier, a Mennonite ministering in Philadelphia on a Saturday handed me a CD (I was a bit surprised he had a CD.) with a sermon message titled "A True Conscientious Objector Today," apparently delivered by a person named Melvin Burkholder. I am basically a pacifist myself and enjoyed listening to it. Maybe we all could be conscientious objectors if through the grace of God we all sincerely followed the Holy Spirit's leading in treating all persons fairly. 

I don't claim to always take things slower, but I do only rent a car a few times a year, taking time to walk, bicycle, and ride the bus much more frequently. And I live in a studio efficiency apartment that helps me limit how much stuff I acquire (though I found that one can fit several bookcases full of books even in a studio efficiency).

Furthermore, I am happy remaining single, which may be a simpler life than marriage. I do remain open to the possibility of.marriage if I meet the right person at the right time in the right way and develop a relationship slowly, but I think I may be called to be single and celibate.

I respect the right of persons to choose a fast-paced life, and at times I do, too. But in general, I think most of us, here in the United States anyway, can benefit by slowing down our pace of life, acquiring fewer possessions, and enjoying the simple pleasures of life more.