Slowing Down Always Helps

The pace of life seems to get faster with each passing day.  Even the pace of commercials on television has become a blur.  It’s easy to feel like you’re falling behind and that everything is going just too fast.  I have learned that slowing down always helps.  Just because the world wants you to make quick decisions and do things now before it’s too late, it doesn’t mean you have to obey.  In fact, when you make a concerted effort to slow your world down a bit, your level of enjoyment will increase almost immediately.  There’s no reason to think that the faster you do things the better off you’ll be.  In fact, it’s quite the opposite.

Slowing down always helps us appreciate the little joys in life just a little bit more.

Retirement has taught me to slow things down and appreciate life.  This is a time to savor the best things that life has to offer and to appreciate all that you have.  You would never rush through a fine bottle of wine so why do we insist on rushing through life?  Busy is not always better.  Retirement is that gift that allows you to slow down the pace of this hectic world.  I have found that slowing down always helps.  Much of life is, indeed, like the fine wine that you savor during a wonderful dinner with friends.  We’ve visited many vineyards and have had some excellent tours with marvelous descriptions of the wine making process and tutorial on how much care, effort and expertise goes into each glass of wine.  The highlight, of course, is the tasting of the product and that always follows the same protocol.  A careful pour of the aged grape into a glass which lends itself to a careful examination of the bouquet, color and tase is done slowly and respectfully with an appreciation for the months of work that preceded this moment.  It is how we should approach each dinner or gathering with friends and family as we take note of how important they are as a part of our life.  Every person is different just like every wine is different and we should appreciate those differences because that is the charm of every experience in life.

We love to travel and have come to appreciate the foods and different cultures of each part of this magnificent world.  Are they different from what we have here in the United States.  Absolutely and, in some ways, wonderfully so.  But there is also a commonality that cannot be denied.  We have learned that people basically want the same things in life.  They want a safe place to raise a family and work at a job that gives them a decent livelihood. They want to enjoy life and most of them don’t need extravagant things to do that.  We have taken the time to appreciate each culture and learn the history of each of the places that we have visited.  That’s a wonderful way to slow down and take it all in.  Instead of each location being part of a checkmark on our bucket list, we have tried to understand what each culture is like and slowing down always helps in this effort.  We always recommend getting a competent local guide who can give you an insight that you probably won’t get on your own.  Amazing things happen when you slow life down and take the time to savor it like the fine wine that you swirl and sip slowly with an appreciation for the local climate and grapes and the master craft of winemaking itself.  Pair that glass of wine with a gourmet meal and you start to merge two skills that have been making people smile for thousands of years.  Europe seems to have more street cafes than the United States and, perhaps, more of a relaxed way of living but there is no reason you can’t slow your life down with a bit of effort.  Wine and food are the perfect places to start.

Why not plan a dinner with friends and family with the goal of slowing everyone down for just one evening.  Put away those phones and computers and turn of the television.  Prepare a meal with love and care and open a bottle or two of a wine that is just a little bit better than you might normally have.  Then sit back and let the evening slowly unwind.  Take the time to appreciate the conversation, the food and the fact that retirement allows you to do this any night of the week with no worries of an alarm clock the next day.  I think you’ll find that slowing down always helps you appreciate the little joys of life just a little bit more.  Get your favorite cookbook and choose a recipe.  Do a little research about the best type of wine to have with what you’re making and then go out and splurge.  You’ll be surprised that a really good wine doesn’t have to cost that much if you do a little research and have access to a store that has a nice selection.  Life is too short to rush through it.  Go out and Enjoy Retired Life!

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