Speed Limit
6 October 2021
Photos
Personally, I was definitely built for comfort and not for speed 😉 The good life is very often the slow life – and when I say good I mean more than pleasant, or fun – but worthy, and valuable, and meaningful. We live in an age where rushing is mistaken for import. I was recently in London, where a man and a woman walked like bulls, pushing through everyone (and in London, everyone knows to keep out of the way as it is). I think they think that we thought they must be important, behaving like that. Mostly, people thought the opposite. The rushed is always the worker bee… desperate for position and showing off… insatiable for taking money or resources because it feels lack so acutely. Meantime, the really important people – that is, the one’s the rushers are trying to be (whether they are objectively important is anyone’s guess) – take it slowly. I have become a fan of the slower pace – not because I am important but because I realized that it often produces great value. It is rare still, a bit of novelty – what with shoe leather sales and powwow appearances and one darn thing after the other. But at least I’ve learned that I need to aspire the opposite direction as everyone else in the rush of the commute. Top speed? Slow and steady wins the race. Every time you read the book.

Peter van der Walt is a fiction author, although you may find some non-fiction and the odd essay out there. Fans can find his newsletter, posts, updates and developments at petervanderwalt.com. Currently, he is hard at work on his next story. When not writing, he has far too many interests to reasonably keep up with. He lives with his partner in Devon, England.