When was the last time you watched a bird fly, sweeping across the sky? Or watched the ripples in the water made by a lone duck waddling away? Or just sat by the window and watched the snow fall?

Came across a piece of inspirational poetry that made me ponder about enjoying life’s simpler joys. The last two lines of the poem say it best!

Slow Dance

Have you ever watched kids on a merry-go-round
Or listened to the rain lapping on the ground?
Ever followed a butterfly’s erratic flight
Or gazed at the sun into the fading night?
You better slow down, don’t dance so fast
Time is short, the music won’t last.

Do you run through each day on the fly?
When you ask ‘How are you’, do you hear the reply?
When the day is done, do you lie in your bed
With the next hundred chores running through your head?
You better slow down, don’t dance so fast
Time is short, the music won’t last.

Ever told you child we’ll do it tomorrow
And in your haste, not see his sorrow?
Ever lost touch, let a good friendship die
‘Cause you never had time to call and say ‘Hi’?
You better slow down, don’t dance so fast.
Time is short, the music won’t last.

When you run so fast to get somewhere
You miss half the fun of getting there
When you worry and hurry through your day
It is like an unopened gift, thrown away..

Life is not a race.. Do take it slower..
Hear the music.. Before the song is over..

— Unknown
(a terminally ill young girl in a New York hospital)