Photo Credit: Maia Twedt, Night Sky in Lake Atitlan, Guatemala
So much pressure to accelerate, as if speed were the archangel of our human experience. Taking a sloth day implies great waste. Priority is placed on expedience, productivity, output. Measuring our lives in accomplishments becomes the yardstick by which we make choices, and by which we develop relationships.
What value is there in simply existing, simply being? Are we sacred by the very nature of having breath, of filling space, of being a person? Or do we in essence have to earn our keep, fulfill a function?
Rick Hanson in his book Resilient: How to Grow an Unshakable Core of Calm, Strength, and Happiness writes, “Be mindful of green zone experiences, value them, and stay with them. Let them into yourself, taking half a dozen seconds or longer to begin hard wiring their way into your brain….Center yourself in the Responsive, green zone by having and internalizing many experiences of safety, satisfaction, and connection.”
To follow this guidance asks us to slow down and soak in the experiences, not to stack one experience on top of another as quickly as possible. Consider creating a sloth day soon!
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