slowing down 2

Understand this, my dear brothers and sisters: You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to get angry. (James 1:19)

I used to be so fast. I walked fast, I talked fast, I just moved quickly. People even said I came into a room like a freight train. My average talking speed was four miles an hour. I drove fast. I just did everything fast.

Then my life changed. Ella was diagnosed with MS and all of a sudden, things slowed down. We walked slower and slower until today we practically crawl places.

And it takes a toll on your personality. What used to just take a minute now takes a lot of time. It will take us almost five minutes just to go out to the car from the house. Since her feet do not work well, she has to walk slowly and deliberately. And because she does, so do I. It is easy to feel like an idiot waiting, but you do get used to it.

It has made me slow down a lot, and it has affected me in ways that surprised me. Not only do I tend to walk slowly, I even drive slowly now. I rarely drive over 60 to 65 miles per hour on the freeway. My walking has slowed down to the point that just about anyone can walk faster than I do.

Part of that is the walking with her, part of it is also the walking alongside the scooters in WalMart and places like that. Those scooters generally go about one mph, so if you want to walk alongside the person who is driving, you walk slowly, just kind of ambling along.

I also find that I have gained the ability to sit quietly now, where I could never do that before. Listening to people I feel no real need to talk. It is amazing what people will tell you when you just sit quietly and listen.

It is an attitude or talent if you wish, that has come hard. I even eat more slowly.

It makes you different. For one thing, you look a lot less dynamic. The charismatic personality I had when I was younger is gone. The vibration I used to put out is stilled.

James, the Lord’s brother who is writing in the above passage, says that we need to not be so quick to do things. The old adage act in haste, repent at leisure is true. You do things quickly and sometimes you do them without thinking them out all the way.

That is theoretically one of the attributes of age, slowing down. And there should also be a certain thought accompanying that slowness.

Of course, just being slow doesn’t really accomplish anything. It really kind of irritates people.

But being slow to get mad, slow to say stupid things – those are good. You do not need to be around someone who is sick to do those.