We live in a busy world, bustling with activities, with clocks announcing the arrival of each hour. The chimes of time reminding us of a million things we have not done. There is an internal pressure to keep moving. Movement brings accomplishment. Accomplishment brings success. Success brings power and money. Money, should then bring happiness? Comfort? Ecstasy? Good health?

We keep moving, keep pressing forward to achieve it all. Busy, bustling, walking, running. There are deadlines, alarms, reminders on our phones, emails and alert chimes. There is a constant need to be connected at all times.

It feels like if you are not running then you are not winning.
If you walk a little slower then you must be lazy, or something must be wrong with you.
If you pause to think or slow down to discern ... you must have a mental disorder that is stopping you?
As the bones get older, and you take a little longer to act ... you should be cast aside as you can no longer keep up with the pace of life.
If you do not speak fast enough, it is best to interrupt and silence the speaker as their thoughts must not be useful.
If you catalogue your successes and smiles on social media, then you must be winning.

We fail to see the humanity in all people. Life is made up of moments in time. The good times can be truly beautiful but the tough times can take a toil on the spirit.

The tough times can cause us to pause a little.
It may make us slow down our pace.
It may make us reflect a little more.
It can cause us to speak slower or not at all.
It may force us to silence those chimes, alerts and reminders and seek comfort in the sounds of silence.
Maybe then, we can appreciate the simple things like good health, the clean air that fills our body and spirit, a warm embrace from family or friends, savor a good meal without interruption, be truly present in our interactions, allow one another to complete a thought or sentence.
It may help us see that pausing and taking our time to breathe is not a race against time but the ultimate companion for time.

May the spirit of the new year, allow us to be kinder to one another. May it cause us to occasionally stumble, and may that stumble or pause lead us to inner peace.

May it cause us to check up on one another and see beneath the veneer of shallow smiles and supposed confidence. When we see our neighbor, friend, colleague, family pause or slow down, may we pause in solidarity with them knowing that one day, we too may need a kind face in our times of weakness

Happy New Year!

This article was authored by Ure L. Mezu-Chukwu, MD, FACC, cardiac electrophysiologist at Mercy Health in Youngstown, OH.