What the World Needs Now

Ever feel like the world is leaving you behind?

I remember a time as a youngster when some of my siblings and neighborhood friends were walking to the park, and I had to run to catch up. I wanted to stop and watch the ants crawl single file across the dirt, to throw a stick in the  water flowing  through the culvert under the road and watch it come out the other side, to listen and try to identify the bird singing in the topmost branches of the climbing maple, to pet the velvety noses of horses gathered along the fence, and to pop the hot tar bubbles on the pavement with my bare toes. All they wanted to do was get to the lake and swim. It's not that I didn't, but there was a lot to experience along the way. 

Sometimes I feel like my whole life has been about trying to catch up. I buy clothing resale years after the fashion fades. I didn't have kids until my thirties. I learn to navigate technology at a snails pace. I didn't publish till my second half century. 

But what if all of my stopping along the way was REALLY what the trip was all about? Maybe what the world needs more of is time lived fully, not spent trying to play catch up. I'm getting where I want to go, but I plan to enjoy the journey.