Читать книгу The Little Book of Sloth Philosophy - Jennifer McCartney - Страница 7

Slow down. Hold your horses. Chill out. Don’t run on the pool deck. We’re constantly being encouraged to embrace stillness. Slowness. Mindfulness. And with good reason. Science has proven that slowing down has loads of advantages – from helping to manage chronic pain to increasing happiness levels and decreasing feelings of stress.

Yet we’re often shamed when we take time for ourselves. Appearing lazy is a cardinal sin in our highly strung society. (It’s also one of the seven deadly sins. If that’s an issue, this book is definitely not for you.) God forbid you lie on a couch once in a while with a pile of chips and cheese, rather than cooking a perfectly balanced meal from scratch using eggs and mustard and whatever else might be in your fridge … Go do something! Make the bed! Book a holiday! Answer those texts! Feed your children! And so we do. And because of this our lives often seem to be chaotic and short of time.

We live in a world where people jog for fun. Where a meditation app has to remind you to breathe deeply. Where you can buy a shrink-wrapped, pre-peeled orange (No time to peel! I’m busy!). Which is why abandoning our hang-ups about laziness and taking it slow is more important now than ever before. Slowing down provides us with a ton of benefits. It’s time to reclaim laziness, take back our time and protest the rat race by staying in bed. And what better mascot for the take-it-slow movement than the incredible, adorable sloth.

Long-limbed, two- or three-toed, a little bit shaggy and a lot wide-eyed, the sloth is one of the cutest (and laziest) animals on the planet. These Amazon dwellers are not only essential to Central and South America’s rainforests, they also have a lot to teach us about the way we live life.

Sloths are mindfulness in action. They’re contemplative, deliberate, relaxed and focused. They aren’t concerned with politics, or who drank the last of the milk, or how many steps they logged on their fitness tracker. They don’t really stress about anything. Live slow, die whenever is their motto. They’re wonderful animals. They resist the urge to be productive and the social pressure to be more successful. They’ve also been on this planet for tens of millions of years – a testament to the wisdom of their way of life, no? They must be doing something right. And now you, too, can live slothfully by embracing the sloth philosophy. It’s a simple mindset and a wonderful way of life – and it doesn’t take much to begin living the way of the sloth. In fact, you’ll be pleased to learn, it takes very little effort. Which is a key part of the sloth philosophy.

So don’t rush. And get ready to relax and unwind. Got a blanket handy? Some flannel pyjamas? Maybe a mug of tea?* Good. Now read on. And soak up the take-it-slow wisdom of the sloth.

* Please note the sloth philosophy embraces the best/least ridiculous parts of hygge, while dispensing with all the candles and socks. This isn’t just about taking time out to have a biscuit. Plus ‘sloth’ is easier to pronounce.