Embrace the Pace

I just recently returned from Africa. More specifically Tanzania. The pace there is drastically different. Life just moves differently. I wondered why. I mean it was of course obvious. It’s underdeveloped, hot and vast. Tanzania also had different energy. There wasn’t as much of a sense of urgency as there is here in the States. I landed, and within the first 30 minutes, even just at the airport, I noticed that my pace had changed. 

But of course, I was on vacation, so no overwhelming demands. But for this trip, we deliberately did something different. We purposely didn’t have much of an agenda. We floated our way through. We had a couple of scheduled safaris, but the rest was a bit unplanned. We wanted to feel the pace of the country. So we immersed ourselves in it. We hung out with locals, asked them where to go. Discovered remote Maasai villages and spent days learning the culture. We ate a traditional banana plantation where the Maasai Mamas cooked meals for their community. We joined them. We embraced their pace.

We learned a lot. Tanzanians are resilient. They live in the authenticity of nature’s pace and nature’s gifts. Plants were used as medicine, food, sustenance and even shelter. We discovered a soapberry tree on one of our safari walks. This berry had many properties that they used, but it also created suds, they used the berries as soap! They smoked elephant dung to stave off headaches and toothaches. Because elephants eat so much and digest so quickly, the waste is full of natural herbs and compounds that are beneficial. They gravitated towards natural remedies over manmade ones. They shared recipes passed down generations upon generations. They took pride in caring for their loved ones. They consumed only what they needed. They were grateful to feed us, interact with us and teach us. Life was hard but simple. They didn’t need much. They lived off the earth. Their days was dictated by the sunrise and sunset. They harvested, they ate, they stuck to community. They taught their children and they worked hard for food and shelter. They had different priorities. Community mattered. Support mattered. Grounding and Nourishment mattered. These were their priorities. Don’t get me wrong. They dealt with life’s demands and responsibilities, but they didn’t seem to look at them as ‘overwhelming’ or burdensome. Instead they stayed connected with each other and the earth. They took everything in stride. They almost looked at everything as a gift.  With gratitude. They trusted their intuition, and that’s what set their pace. Their resiliency was rooted in their pace and how they moved. They moved with love, they moved in tune with nature, they moved with intention. They didn’t have the luxuries we did. But the one thing they consistently had, were endless smiles and warm open hearts.

Physically, I felt very different. I weighed less, my inflammation went down, muscle and joint pains that I sometimes felt had totally disappeared. I felt lighter, I felt free, I felt peace.

Upon coming back, I became totally and completely disoriented. I came back and got thrown right back into my life. I was jolted into the pace I had set for myself here in New Jersey. I felt overwhelmed by schedules, routines, appointments and responsibilities. I had returned to a pace of speed and expectation. I actually felt scared. I hid for about a week. But then it hit me. I have control over my pace. I can move as slowly or as quickly as I want. We all can. 

As I reflect, I wonder…What would happen if we all just chose to move at a slower pace? What if we meet our schedules and responsibilities with stride instead of stress? Maybe we wouldn’t get burnt out? Maybe our inflammation would go down? Maybe our relationships with our loved ones will flourish? Maybe, just maybe we will consistently find joy and sustenance in life’s simple pleasures.

Rubina