Well, I have now been obeying the speed limit for nearly two weeks. Life seems to be passing by at a much slower pace. It is a nice change and surprise that simply by slowing down in the car my life seems to have slowed down too. I don't rush to get out of the door, I plan ahead of time to leave at a decent hour. I don't have frantic thoughts running through my mind as to how to cram in all the activities I need to do. I simply budget the time for them and they all seem to fall into line. It is nice being at this slower pace. And I am amazed at how many people actually follow the speed limit. Slowing down has allowed me to observe that 90% of the people on the road are going the speed limit or less. I never knew. I have been driving for nearly 18 years (amazing!) and I always thought people pushed the speed limit. What an eye-opening experience to see that they actually do not!
This type of world-view changing experience reminds me of my first year of teaching. Before I ever taught I saw the world as pretty black and white where school was concerned. A student either did his work and earned his grade or he didn't do the work and at the worst failed. As a teacher I was able to see the behind-the-scenes agony that many teachers face trying to pass their students. Most teachers don't want to give easy As, but at the same time most teachers don't want to be tyrants either. They try to take into account a child's home life / health / social challenges and personal strengths and weaknesses before they give them the final grade (allowing make-up tests and extra credit to even out any odds and ends). Add on top of that parents who pressure teachers to dish out passing grades and the whole picture really changes. Who knew, right? But I guess I was primed for life to have its surprises. Studying French in college helped me realize that life is not always perceived by others how it has been presented to you. It was all the cultural differences between a French woman and an Oklahoman that first opened pandora's box and challenged my understanding of how the world works. And, I guess, my time interning in DC and working for the Senator also helped push the envelope too. The people making the laws are not always following the rules they are creating, though there must be a few noble souls out there truly trying to do good-- good as they understand it. (Is there actually good that is definable? I believe so, the Bible defines it clearly if you study it in earnest.) And of course, being married to a Guatemalan has been the ultimate challenge to my life perspective. We understand each other more clearly now than ever before, but without a doubt we still perceive the world through wholly different eyes.
It is comforting to find like-minded souls who dance to the same rhythm of life, who see the world from a similar perspective. But life is richer when one's perspective is challenged and renewed. So although the tickets were not a pleasant thing to receive, I am grateful for them. They have taught me a new lesson that is proving to be valuable... Slow down, life won't run away from you, it might actually come to you! :)
P.S. Maybe this is why I love photography so much. I feel like my perspective is always being challenged at some level and with photography I have a chance to say "See, here is the way I see it. This is how I view life and all that is around me." With photography I get to make an exclamation point about my view of the world.
No comments:
Post a Comment