Run

Run
Keep running
Don’t stop
Don’t look back
Keep running
Run

Where am I running to? What am I chasing? Why is everyone asking me to run faster? 

Hello, I am an average human being residing on this esteemed planet Earth. I have a few goals, and I like achieving them. Goals have become mere tasks in my life, and I must keep ticking them off my list. I have no time to rest because I will fall behind in my timeline. A timeline defined by the society that my mind internally follows no matter how much I want to fight it. 

I want to reward myself for getting out of bed despite it being tedious because of the gloomy clouds looming over the sky, making my view outside the window look depressing just as soon as I opened my eyes. But my morning team meeting makes me go on with my day like I did not just do something out of the ordinary.

I want to reward myself for getting a degree after toiling day and night studying for my exams because I juggled between university, friends, assignments and family despite being in my early twenties. However, everyone who meets me wants to know if I found a job or what plans I have next. 

I want to enjoy my twenties, having a picnic wearing a summer dress and eating an orange popsicle while reading classic literature like Little Women. I want to make bad choices like cutting my hair and learning lessons from it instead of trying to make decisions that live up to the expectations of others. I want to hide on a faraway island, listen to Y2K pop songs and be socially unreachable for a while.

What if I want to rejoice in my victory after achieving every goal (be it big or small) of mine? Take days, weeks or months to reminisce the taste of sweet victory before carrying forward with my life. Or maybe take a break to pause from all the commotion around the path towards the goal. Though I might not follow the defined timeline, I will get there one day or might even decide to change my goals.

No more running. No more chasing. I am slowing down to love the life I am living in the present.

Breathe
Pause for a minute
Stop for a while
Reminisce and enjoy the present
Pause for a minute
Breathe