Hang a sec, Beep-in*

*Beep-in (verb.) - Taking an hour off your present life to reflect upon your past, then re-appreciating your present

Toot.

Every now and then for the past two months, I get some quiet time to myself which I use to reminisce past events and dig into nostalgia. Even when these sessions creep in involuntarily on a Friday night, they have taught me the value of "slow". As Singaporeans and Asians, "fast" is in our blood - efficiency is always valued right after intelligence and skill. It did not take me long in the U.S. to realise that, as I soon saw myself complaining and loathing the slow pace of life. I have always thought that I enjoy "slow"; sitting in Starbucks with a cup of green tea latte and reading a book in hand was my sort of thing. But the culture of "slow" in Los Angeles has way surpassed my level of tolerance and ability for appreciating the benefits of taking things slow. Americans love to talk. On weekends, cafes are filled to the brim with everyone dressed in casuals with their sunnies as a headband. Sometimes, it gets so busy and loud in these places that I even forget why my feet brought me there in the first place.

But that wasn't how I envisioned a "slow" me-time to be. To me, the purpose of going slow is so that you can appreciate things that you would have otherwise missed. One can even take the peace and quiet from going slow to better analyse situations and even calm the mind. That is what I love about taking a break from life, going slow and having your mind transport itself to an alternate universe where you can finally think - clearly.

In my hour tonight, I switched off the TV, MacBook and was only in the company of my warm room lights, and occasional sounds from the street outside. I was not staring into space, nor was I at all bored with flipping through my photos on my iPhone camera roll. I started from the top of over a thousand photos - when I first got back from Shanghai in 2012.

I realised that in the past year, I had been blessed with the amazing company of friends, family, school books and scrumptious foods. I was pampered by the protectiveness of my country, educated by the teachings of wise, experienced folks, and most importantly, loved by my family. I miss my impromptu brunches with Mummy the most, and while she still goes for them now and then, I just wish I can be there with her so she doesn't have to be alone. Photographs are indeed the best physical copies of memories one can keep and revisit, right after video recordings.

In life, we always seek to aim high or higher - brand new car, a beautiful house, a great job, and the list goes on. But we have never once stopped to say, "Hey, I've got everything I need. This is enough. This is me." It is never wrong to have dreams and work hard to make sure you achieve them. Just remember to never forget who you are and the people that have got you thus far.

Greed is dangerous and satisfaction is never enough. Perhaps it is time to come up with a new strategy in order to achieve good balance!

Enjoy the weekend, loves! I'll write about my week in a couple of days (:
xx.