The Reality of Slow Living - How to Live Your Life Fully

In today's world, it's natural and normal to feel like we should be doing more. But perhaps being present in our lives is enough. You know, often our days are full, but we're unsatisfied. We're living in a time of extreme self-improvement. Everywhere we look, people are trying to find quick solutions to ameliorate their lives. And slow living seems to be another one. For the last three years, I have been learning what it means to live slow. And in the past several months, as I've noticed the term slow living becoming more mainstream, I can't help but wonder, is slow living yet another trendy self-improvement train to hop onto? I feel it's important to recognize that slow living isn't just a trend, it's an enduring way of approaching life that goes much deeper than aesthetics. You don't have to live in the rural countryside to live simply and slowly. You don't have to garden, or farm, or be into cottagecore, or make bread from scratch. Slow living is so much deeper than that. It's a way of being that brings immense peace and inner fulfillment. Because when it comes down to it, slow living is about essentialism and presence. As a collective, most of us are walking around this life half asleep. Even if you're busy, even if you're doing or producing things that seem important, it's very easy to start chasing the wrong things. But living slow helps us live our lives more fully, because there is a focus behind it. To me, slow living resembles intuitive living. Because when you know yourself, and when you know what you inherently value in your life, everything around you just becomes clear. I like to think of writers in this way. When an author looks back at their career of writing books, they don't remember the opening up the box of their newly printed book, or reading the reviews as soon as they come out. They remember the process of writing. The act of showing up each day to put the words to paper. They remember where they were when they wrote it, and how they felt when they finished writing each day. I think it's similar to our own lives. When we look back on our lives, we won't remember the destination. We'll remember the journey of living, and the sweet mundane of it all. When we do things without being attached to the outcome, ideas, clarity, and solutions have the space to drop in. We live fully by being aware. Awareness is simply observing the present reality. It's noticing yourself listening to, and watching this video right now. Pausing, observing the space between the chattering of your thought, and the stillness in the moment. Slow living has taught me a lot about patience, and about enjoying where I'm at right now in my life. I'm no longer striving or chasing for an outcome, or something far out into the future, but I'm delighting in the process as it unfolds. I love this quote by Helen Keller. She says, I long to accomplish a great and noble task, but it is my chief duty to accomplish small tasks as if they were great and noble. I just, I love that. I have it written down on a post-it note near my desk. But it's so true. There's a lot of joy gained from accomplishing each small task, from delighting in the process of taking action in small ways every single day. Personally, I know for me, there is no greater joy than taking the small action steps of my day-to-day in my home, like getting my favorite sponge, and lathering it with my favorite lemon-scented dish soap, and washing the dishes by hand, or the smell of fresh clean laundry right as I take it out of the washing machine. I feel so much joy in taking my fresh clean laundry out of the washing machine, putting it on the balcony with a clothespin, and enjoying the sun. These are such small things that when we tap into our five senses, it really brings us into this present moment. Slow living is a lifestyle choice that is very different from the mainstream, because instead of needing to be seen to be busy, productive, or successful, you just need to enjoy your life. In a way, slow living values privacy, and living a private life that is free from the pressure of the outside world When living slow, know that you don't have to have your whole life mapped out. You don't need to have a plan. What you do need to know, though, is what you place priority in. What is essential to you? What is life giving to you? And plan your life around the things that you value most. For me, what I've learned with slow living is that it's very important to discipline our minds to not be so easily distracted by the constant stimulation. Enjoying the silent moments. Focusing on one task at a time. I often wonder, do we find comfort in the noise? Are we embarrassed by silence? Living slowly is having purpose and intention behind your daily choices. And keeping it consistent. Because one big choice, one big action, will not bring you consistent joy. Life is a marathon, not a sprint. Move like a snail and have the long-standing endurance to keep going at a snail's pace. If the way of life you're currently living doesn't serve you and the life experience that you want to have, stop buying into it. Question everything you've been taught. Notice how spiders spend all their days weaving intricate webs only to have them damaged by the wind and then start all over again. Living slowly is not only about enjoying the process, but also about being resilient. It's pacing yourself, going at your own natural rhythm, your own speed, and ignoring the speed of everyone and everything around you. You have the power to decide how the rest of your life goes. When I started living slowly, I began living fully. This is what I've learned about the slow living journey over the past few years. Take what works for you and enjoy the ride.