Slow Down Therapy **
1. Slow down; you are not responsible for doing it all yourself, right now.
2. Remember a happy, peaceful time in your past. Rest there. Each moment has
richness that takes a lifetime to savor.
3. Set your own pace. When someone is pushing you, it's OK to tell them they're
pushing and it's not good for you.
4. Take nothing for granted: watch water flow, the corn grow, the leaves blow, your
neighbor mow.
5. Taste your food. It is to delight as well as to nourish.
6. Notice the sun, the moon, and the stars as they rise and set. They are
remarkable for their steady pattern of movement, not their speed. Watch and
listen to the night sky. It speaks.
7. Quit planning how you're going to use what you know, learn, or possess. Gifts just
are; be grateful and their purpose will be clear.
8. When you talk with someone, don't think about what you'll say next. Thoughts will
spring up naturally if you let them. If you are only thinking of your next word you
will miss a blessing from that someone.
9. Create a place in your home... at your work... in your mind… in your heart... where
you can go for quiet and recollection. You deserve it and will be better for it.
10. Allow yourself time to be lazy and unproductive. Rest isn't luxury; it's a
necessity; it improves us.
11. Listen to the wind blow. It carries a message of yesterday and tomorrow - and
now. NOW counts.
12. Rest on your laurels. They bring comfort whatever their size, age, or condition.
13. Talk slower. Talk less. Don't talk at all sometimes. Communication isn't
measured by words. When talking with others, look into their eyes.
14. Give yourself permission to be late sometimes. Life is for living, not scheduling.
15. Listen to the song of a bird; the complete song. Music and nature are gifts, but
only if you are willing to receive them.
16. Take time just to think. Action is good and necessary, but it's fruitful only if we
muse, ponder, and mull. Take time to wonder. Without wonder, life is merely
existence. Wondering does not come easy for everyone- so cultivate it.
17. Make time for play- the things you like to do. Whatever your age, your inner child
needs recreation and re-creation. Talk and play with children. It will bring out the
unhurried little person hidden inside you.
18. Listen to the words YOU speak. Are you saying what you mean? Are your
prayers informal and sincere?
19. Learn to stand back and let others take their turn as leaders. There will always
be new opportunities for you to step out in front again.
20. Divide big jobs into little jobs. If God took six days to create the universe, can
you hope to do any better?
21. When you find yourself rushing and anxious, stop. Ask yourself WHY you are
rushing and anxious. The reasons may improve your self-understanding and the
outcome.
22. Take time to read the Bible. Thoughtful reading is enriching reading, improving
your life.
23. Direct your life with purposeful choices, not with speed and efficiency. The best
musician is one who plays with expression and meaning, not the one who
finishes first.
24. Take a day off alone; make a retreat. It's not being selfish to take care of
yourself.
25. Pet a furry friend. You will give and get the gift of now, and it will stay with you.
26. Work with your hands. It frees the mind. The result is not as important as the
inner peace during and after.
27. Sit in the dark, quietly. It will teach you to see and hear, taste and smell. Once in
a while, turn down the lights, the volume, the throttle, the invitations. Less really
can be more. Let go. Nothing is usually the hardest thing to do - but often it is
the best.
28. Take a walk-but don't go anywhere. If you walk just to get somewhere, you
sacrifice the walking.
29. Count your friends. If you have one, you are lucky. If you have more, you are
blessed. Bless them in return.
30. Count your blessings- one at a time- and slowly.
~ author unknown ~
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