Dear You,

Are you living life in the fast lane, at warp speed and you feel tired? Do you long to step off the hamster’s wheel for a richer and slower pace, even just for a while?

This letter is to anyone (and to myself) who feels that they might have too much on their plates at times, and want to step back to replenish the essence of you.

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More appreciation, less speed

Dear You,

You know faster is not always better. More isn’t always what you need.

Instead, you are seeking to do everything at the right speed.

You are seeking to savour the hours and minutes, rather than just rushing through them to move on to the next task on your to-do list.

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You are seeking to do everything as well as possible, instead of as fast as possible.

It’s about quality over quantity. About having the time and mental space to sit, slow down and just be.

Slow down for renewal

Dear You,

The only thing for certain is that everything changes.

The rate of change in our modern world has increased so much.

If you want to hang on, you better speed up. Do more, with less time. That seems to be the dominant message of today.

But no matter how much things change, certain basic needs are still the same. The need for togetherness, care and love. These can be given from other people to you, but most importantly from you to you.

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In order to master changes, you are looking to recover slowness and reflection. There you know you will find a renewal of spirit.

Richness in moments

Dear You,

You are seeking a slower and richer life – not in money or possessions or success, but a richness in moments.

If you think back to when you were a child, or a teenager, or even as a young adult – there were times in your life when you were completely in the moment.

Times when you had moments of complete pleasure, when you were entirely focused on what you are doing, on having an enjoyable time right then, right in the NOW.

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While obligations abound and everyone demands a bit (or a lot) of you, how do you step back, slow down and live well?

Maybe you can try creating some time for yourself, even if it is only for 10 or 15 minutes. A time which you can savour and be in the moment. And when you can let go of the fast-paced, hurried way of living.

Embrace the slowing down, for it is a gift to you.

Let’s create a new resting zone

Dear You,

More than ever, as busy overthinking grownups, we need to remind ourselves to stop every now and then.

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To stop worrying about more than one thing at a time.

To stop multitasking so often that it becomes our full-time state.

Slow down, just for a little while, to the point that you actually STOP.

You don’t need to stop so much that you don’t keep going. I am not talking about dropping the bundle completely, but resting just for a little while.

Connect with yourself using tea

Dear You,

Telling yourself to just stop can be difficult though, because you may feel a bit uneasy if you aren’t doing something. I know I do!

Maybe you feel that you can’t just sit down and do nothing, right? That you need to be productive, do more, be more!

Give yourself permission though, to schedule something that you enjoy for the sake of enjoying, and that can calm your mind with a richer and slower pace.

I have found this in the ritual of taking tea. The process of making tea for yourself is a wonderful way of slowing down and being in the moment.

Even though ancient civilisations have drunk tea for thousands of years, in some ways I feel like it is always a new discovery.

This is because with each new tea you drink, you get different taste and aroma because of where it came from and how it was processed.

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But it is also because there is a deeper layer to how people are affected by the enjoyment and experience of tea.

Tea takes a step back and pulls you in with it, into a more focused and patient pace of life.

It allows you the time, space and quietude to rediscover yourself over and over again. You ground yourself, rather than being subjected to the forces of nature.

You become your own harbour, against the winds of change.

Experience the tea

Dear You,

Tea is a great scheduled activity – because it has a beginning, a middle and an end. It is easy to make a specific time to slot having a proper cup of tea into your day.

Think about the journey the tea took to get into your cup – not just the boiling and steeping process that happened five minutes ago, but the time, care and cultivation that goes into the growing process of the plant.

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Then think about the journey that you took to come to this moment in time, and think a little about the steps you are going to take when you get back up from your cup of tea.

Think about the positive potential of this moment – what are you going to do with it? What are you going to take with you from this moment as you get up and on with your day?

Tea changes and evolves through time, through years and seasons, as do people. This moment that you spend with yourself and your cup of tea can restore you in incredible ways.

The World Tea Academy puts it beautifully:

‘To flourish and nurture our own well-being then, we must choose carefully for ourselves the values that shape and the activities that fill the lives we lead. The idea of crafting a modern tea lifestyle is predicated on the human experience shared around the world that tea is more than just a beverage. [We should explore] the lessons that tea offers and how the way of tea can infuse our lives with wisdom, qualities and practices that support our well-being and nurture our innate human desire to flourish.’

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So, stick this letter up wherever you need it, dear You, to remember to slow down and seek a richer and slower pace of life. Reconnect with yourself.

Best wishes always,

Suk-yi @ The Caffeine Trifecta