Twas the week before Christmas and I was headed to an important meeting, although not with St. Nick.  Since I was leaving later than I had intended I was on “rush.” I did take time to slow myself down for with a departing prayer for safety and I carefully rounded a tight corner in the neighborhood close to my home.  Then I promptly stepped on the gas pedal.

To my great surprise I rapidly saw commotion at the bottom of the hill I was on.  A couple of extra cars were parked and a man was standing in the road.  Yup, it was officer Mc Quicken and he was freshly commissioned to catch those who were speeding.  Complaints had come in from this normally sleepy little neighborhood.  (Truth be told, our neighborhood has not exactly been sleepy lately with additional construction traffic.)

AND, I was guilty!  I had been speeding.  It took me a few minutes to ground my disappointment and embarrassment.  Mixed in with those feelings quickly was gratitude.  Whatever the outcome to my bank account and driver’s record, I had been spared physically hurting myself or an unsuspecting person or pet.

What I have realized in the days since is that speeding in my neighborhood is not difficult.  We have several hills which provide momentum that easily exceeds the 25 mph speed limit!  More importantly I have tuned into my own internal tempo and discovered that as the “checklist” gets longer, my internal sense of urgency can creep up adding adrenalin and speed.

So, the unexpected “gift” of this season is yet another opportunity to:

=Be present and ask myself, “What’s really important in this moment?”

= What is my internal pace?  How is it affecting my external one?

= Is my current pace safe and sustainable?