Slow Down You Move Too Fast!

A Lesson from a Blue-haired Old Lady

“I always seem to get stuck behind a blue-haired old lady who wants to go 40 mph on the highway.” Sarah, my former-coworker griped to a group of us at lunch one day. “Why is that?”

John who had been sitting at the table eating his sandwich quietly piped up saying, “Maybe that was God’s way of slowing you down. Maybe if she hadn’t been in your path you would have been in and accident.”

The whole table was silent for a moment considering his supposition. Then Sarah responded. “Hmmm…I never thought about it like that.”

Last week I was racing to meet a work deadline. As a solopreneur, it seems like there is always work to be done. It was a Sunday and stores, if they are even open, close super early here. I needed to go grocery shopping before the supermarket closed. So at about 10 a.m., I pulled myself away from work to go. It was a bright Sunny day and I needed the walk and the break. I hurried along the street barely seeing my surroundings, stuck in my head thinking about what I would do when I returned home. My mind was going a million miles a minute.

When I got to the store, I hurried in and grabbed the items I needed. I was surprised to see there weren’t long lines at the checkout counters. Good, I’d thought as I took my place behind and stout white-haired elderly man who was about ready to pay. I laid out my things on the conveyor belt quickly, and then he pulled out a check! I peered two lanes over and there was only one person waiting in line there. I considered packing my things and moving to that lane, but decided to stay. All my items were already out of my basket. The line is going to move, I thought, hopefully.

The man finished writing out his check and he handed it to the cashier who inserted it into the reader in the register. And wouldn’t you know it, it was not accepted. I thought, why is it that whenever I’m in a hurry I always pick the slow lane. But I stayed there, trying not to be the impatient American (that I can still sometimes be) in France.

After several minutes the cashier called over her manager for help. At that point, not willing to wait any longer, I packed up my items and went to another register. It was clear it was going to be a while before they sorted the check issue out. There I purchased my items and went on my way. As I walked toward the exit, I glanced at the older gentleman who was still trying to pay for his groceries

By now the sun was higher in the sky and the day was heating up. I started walking back to my apartment up the fairly steep incline at a steady clip. Just as I got to a place on the sidewalk that was narrow and where cars were parked on the side of the street, a dark-haired woman pushing a stroller and with two other small children in tow decided to enter the sidewalk ahead of me. Needless to say she was in no hurry. But I was.

In that moment of exasperation, I remembered that supposition that John had shared with me and my coworkers years earlier. Perhaps the old man in the supermarket and this women with kids were my “blue-haired lady”. Maybe God was telling me or forcing me to slow down!

In that moment of awareness I sighed, releasing the breath I’d been holding unconsciously. I smiled to myself and slowed down my steps and my mind. I mentally recited the affirmation that always brings me back to a place of calm whenever I feel pressed for time: “I have more than enough time to get the things I need to done.”

Do you find yourself often stuck behind people who seem intent on slowing you down? What thoughts go through your mind in those moments? The next time this happens to you, I welcome you to think about the blue-haired lady, take a deep breath, and relax. It is sure to make you smile.