The Heart of Slow Living

By Laura Folk

My first introduction to the slow life was over twenty years ago when I lived in a tipi one winter. It was in the mountains of New Mexico where it snowed and could go down to eight degrees below zero at night. Living under such conditions lends itself to a slower life as your days and nights are focused around keeping the fire going. I kept warm by the fire, cooked on the fire, washed with water heated by the fire. Being centered on the hearth is the heart of slow living.

Today the hearth is not a wood stove, but the idea of living from the heart, or being authentic. A natural focus on the present moment evolves from this authenticity. The slow life is not so much about figuring out how to do activities slower. It is about staying mindful twenty-four hours a day. When you are able to live mindfully, you “choose” how you respond to everything going on in your day as opposed to running on reaction.

Living in this thoughtful way puts you back in control. The problem with the current society and its race to nowhere is just this, lack of control. The media may tell you what to eat, what to buy, how sick you probably are, and what dangerous medicines you have to choose from, to live with the malady. You end up rushing at life, trying to do what everyone is telling you to do. Eventually, you end up several years down the road, still rushing to yet another goal, feeling empty inside.

I dare you, to do what I do. Start where you are. Wake up in the morning, and be still. Before you get out of bed, give thanks for what you have. Take some slow, deep breaths. When you get up, take time eating your breakfast. Listen to the birds outside your window. Smile at your loved ones, your pets, or just yourself. Remind yourself how precious life is. You are beginning to live the slow life, as YOU decide, what living the slow-life movement, is for you. You are the only one who can light the fire in your hearth, and keep that fire burning.