If you know me, you know that I am the definition of a type-A personality. So much so that just being married to me has made my husband a somewhat stressed individual--which is no small feat because he was the textbook definition of type-B! A perfect example of our differences was just yesterday evening in the grocery store when we were making our way to the check out and I pulled a hold-that-thought on a conversation we were having so that I could stand in express lane number 3 while he stood in express lane number 4, the ultimate goal being to give ourselves the option to choose whichever one went faster. He called me back over to his lane and said "We don't always have to be in the shortest lane,"and proceeded with the conversation.
It kind of blew my mind. I mean really, I had a miniature revelation. "We don't have to what?... But I thought that was the goal... Apparently I need a second to rearrange my priorities in life!" I'm always go go go, and I don't think you have to be type A to have a sense of what I'm talking about; you just have to be an American in the 21st century.
The last several years of my life have gone by faster and brought more change than I like to think about. It brings to mind the song by Kenny Chesney:
"Don't blink, just like that you're six years old and you take a nap, and you wake up now you're 25 and your high school sweetheart becomes your wife."
Realizing how fleeting life is is a sobering thing, and for me the sobriety has left me with a mentality of urgency. It's like a clock is silently ticking in my ear. (Psychological parallel alert: I do not own a single clock; I hate them.) It's caused me to make the most of my time, but the irony is that a fast-paced lifestyle only makes it go faster.
"So I've been tryin' to slow it down, I've been tryin' to take it in, in this here today gone tomorrow world we're livin' in..."
For some people this is a harder thing to do than others. Being that I work 0-16 hours a week, I personally have little excuse. For myself, I prescribe playing a little more with my puppy, spend more time kicking back, and buying a clock, ok not buying a clock. For those of you who relate to this post but don't have time on their side, try taking the first line at the grocery store you see instead of searching for the shortest. Maybe even make chit-chat with the cashier (no matter how unfriendly they seem or how long and dirty their nails are, if you shop at WalMart).
"Trust me friend, a hundred years goes faster than you think."
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