forward is a pace

I have a sticker created by Bound for Nowhere that reads “Nowhere fast, everywhere eventually” and I think that’s a pretty apt motto for my life, both metaphorically and physically. Metaphorically, because the process of finding friends, hobbies, careers, and my “path in life,” has always developed slowly, sometimes slower than I’d like. And physically, because as a new-ish runner, I run at a slow pace and do run/walk intervals, often slower than I’d like. As a result, I’ve been feeling kind of down lately about where I’m at. But who says slow has to be a bad thing? Who says there’s a speed that is right or wrong? Sloths have been taking things slow for 65 million years and they’re still around. So perhaps slow can be a good thing?

In a world of digital messaging, next day shipping, and Google at your fingertips, I think the human perception of time has sped up while our patience has shortened. Some days seem to go faster than others. The old saying “time flies when you’re having fun” has never been more true than it is now. But in reality each minute is no longer or shorter than the next. It’s just our perception of it that has changed. We’re encouraged to desire instant gratification and instant results, and when things don’t happen overnight (because they rarely do), we’re disappointed.

But there’s so much purpose in the process and I need to remember that. There’s purpose to the everyday grind; the little steps I take that add up to something larger so that when I look back years later, I see the growth, even if it didn’t feel like growth in the moment. So I want to embrace the process, and embrace my pace rather than condemning it. Because my pace is my pace and that’s not a bad thing.

I listened to a friend’s podcast recently (The Evolving Adventurer) who said “forward is a pace” and it really spoke to me. As long as I’m moving forward, regardless of how big or small that movement may be, then I know I’ll get to everywhere…eventually.