Hey! Slow Down!

My hydrangea is gradually blooming,
lengthening it's time of beauty.

Things are blooming in my garden....and I'm missing it!
Lately, life has been zipping by so fast that I feel like I'm barely keeping my head above water.  Quite a few times in the last 2 weeks, I have felt my head slipping below the surface, days when my "to do" list is impossibly long, I'm double booked all over the place.  The worst is when there is a list just as long for the next day, with no relief in sight, and I just don't see how I can get it all done.  Something's gotta give!
Yes, anyone with children knows how busy June is.  As schools wrap up for the year, there are performances, celebratory field trips, end-of-year festivals and BBQs, added in with the usual monthly birthday parties, sports commitments, and your time suddenly is not your own.  This year seems particularly worse than in years previous, and I find myself juggling and struggling to keep up.
When you think about it, our modern way of life is built around efficiency and multi-tasking.  In fact, if you aren't juggling something, you are just an under-achiever, aren't you?  We have somehow forgotten that patience is a virtue, that good things come to those who wait.  I see this all the time with my students.  They ask a question and expect an immediate answer, having absolutely no patience to discover a solution.  I see it with myself, waiting at a traffic light or waiting in line.
The good news is that yoga practice and mini-meditations can help re-adjust your focus and remind you how important it is to slow down.  When you're waiting for a traffic light, instead of worrying about "how long" the light is taking to change so that you can be on your way, you can take the moment (and it usually is around a minute) to focus on breathing deep instead of focusing on how you're being held-up on your errand, your commute to work, or your after school carpool shuffling.  When you're breathing deep, your breath is automatically lengthened, giving you time to think of a simple mantra as you inhale and repeat it again as you exhale.  Breathing deep gives you time to stop and actually smell the roses (and maybe, you'll make the time to watch them bloom in your garden!)
In the garden, things aren't in a hurry to happen all at once.  They take their time, and little by little, they gradually share their beauty with us.  It's not something you can rush, and sadly, if you're always so busy, you might not have the chance to see it happen.  Take some time, breathe deeply, and appreciate the times that you're forced to wait.  Maybe you'll catch a bloom in action.

I hope I slow down enough to catch this rose as it blooms!

Live slowly - "All mankind's troubles are caused by one single thing, which is their inability to sit quietly in a room." - Blaise Pascal