I was late for something and missed my turn twice. I wasn’t breathing. I was thinking of being late and getting there fast. I overrode my first impulse to turn. Then got a ticket on my way back and missed the second turn. Then my GPS on my phone went wonky. I then took a breath. A deep breath and slowed down.

I got to thinking, what is going on right now that I am rushing. In the past if I am late, I usually  just let the person know and continue on focusing what is in my control, knowing I will get there when I get there. Yet this time was different.
I think of the Simon & Garfunkel  song, with the lyrics: “slow down you move too fast, gotta make the moment last.”

What if it is a moment I don’t like for whatever reason, do I try to move faster? When do I allow myself to move slower? What determines my speed? What do I allow to determine my anxiety? When do I override my wants and impulses to adjust to what I think “should” be?

I noticed after my deep breath bringing myself back to me vs thinking of where I need to be or the next thing on the list. I also let go of the judgement around being late. And I allowed myself to move at my pace even in the midst of being late.

Take a moment to take a breath. Where and when do you rush? How do you override your impulses? Do you have “shoulds” in your life or ideas of what is and isn’t “appropriate?”