✨slow down, you crazy child ✨

vienna by billy joel has been one of my all-time favorite songs since watching "13 going on 30" in my pre-teen years. 

jenna rink becomes an adult seemingly overnight. And adulthood is not quite the picture perfect life she imagined. and isn't jenna all of us? 

we rushed through childhood because we wanted to be teenagers with more freedom. 

we rushed through our teenage years to get to college and early adulthood for more independence and to do what we want. 

we rushed through that season to get jobs and have careers and get married and start, what we considered would be, the real beginnings of our lives. 

we always want the next thing, assuming it will be better than the moment we're in. it seems like even as adults in our 30s and 40s, we still have that issue. or, i know i do. 

the pandemic and shelter-in-place forced a lot of us to slow down in ways we never knew how to. in ways we'd never even thought we could. so many of us got used to that slower pace. not feeling the constant need to make plans or rush to the next appointment/meeting. or putting something on the calendar just for the sake of staying busy.

now, as we're a couple years removed from the pandemic, we crave a slower lifestyle than before. but, we're getting back to the rush, rush, rush, we've tried so hard to avoid. the non-stop, constant schedules and notifications. so how do we marry the two ideas of returning to normal while also letting ourselves breathe and not adding unwanted stress and pressure to our shoulders. 

the last couple of weeks, i've started feeling the overwhelm of life again. so many projects. i've been reading "the unplugged hours," by one of my favorite authors, hannah brencher. in it, she talks about her journey of spending more intentional time unplugged from technology to allow her to plug back into her own real life, and be fully present. 

as i scrolled through my instagram feed earlier this week, the phrase "slow down," kept popping up for me. so, that's what i did. i've been pondering it and thinking through and praying about it. 

as i've gotten older, the lyrics to "vienna" are more relatable than ever. 

v.1

slow down, you crazy child

you're so ambitious for a juvenile

but then if you're so smart, 

tell me why are you still so afraid?

where's the fire, what's the hurry about?

you'd better cool it off before you burn it out

you've got so much to do

and only so many hours in a day

chorus

but, you know that when the truth is told 

you can get what you want or you can just get old

you're gonna kick off before you even get halfway through

when will you realize, vienna waits for? 

v.2

slow down, you're doin' fine

you can't be everything you wanna be before your time

although it's so romantic on the borderline tonight, tonight

too bad, but it's the life you lead

you're so ahead of yourself that you forgot what you need 

though you can when you're wrong

you know you can't always see when you're right

you've got your passion, you've got your pride

but don't you know that only fools are satisfied?

dream on, but don't imagine they'll all come true, 

when will you realize, vienna waits for you?

slow down, you crazy child

and take the phone off the hook and disappear for a while

it's all right, you can afford to lose a day or two,

when will you realize, vienna waits for you?

working as a social media manager, it feels more challenging to feel like i can unplug. or maybe i simply use it as an excuse. everything evolves and shifts so quickly, what if i miss the latest trend? or if i'm not online, then i'll miss something and get major FOMO, you know? i feel this need to be on even when i'm not necessarily on my company's account. 

slow down. 

take a breath. 

put your hand over your heart and feel it beating.

remember your purpose. 

remember your why. 

remember that there's so much more to life than to live and die. 

we can't stop the world from go, go, going...but, we can set boundaries and draw lines where it makes sense for us. there are still moments when i can unplug and don't need to check my phone every five minutes. in fact, it's much better for everyone that way. 

we can put our phones away for the sunsets. 

we can put our phones away when we're deep in conversation with someone we love. 

we can put the phone away and not feel the need to post that photo on instagram, or at least right away. 

we can change our reliance on the phones and fill our calendars with other activities and hobbies that take more focus and concentration on something else. 

like any habit, it will take time. 

but, i want time back. i want to be able to feel free of thinking i'm always missing out when there are things to do or people in front of me. i want to be more present, fully engaged and not reaching for my phone as a way to disconnect, but rather help me feel more connected in my real life. 

-Shelby