Grandma Hobbies, The Discovery Of Slowness, And A Tree Museum
4 Thoughts, 4 Nudges, a Place, a Person, a Prescription - giving you slow power
Hi, I’m Claudia, helping you face a hurried world
with greater confidence in your “Power of Slow”.
This is a 3-Minute-Read by the publication Un-Rush,
stretching your thinking and perspective on slowing down.
THINKING OUT LOUD.
The power of slow brings you back to the root of who you are: a person with focus, awareness, attention, and a conscious mindset.
NOTICING SYMPTOMS OF RUSHING
Clumsiness.
Driving yourself mad, quite literally, with urgency.
Having a strong feeling of guilt when tempted to slow down.
Expecting the perfect solution now for no other reason than to just “get it over with”.
Forgetting your loved one’s birthday.
Feeling guilty of being busy constantly.
Photography is one way to slow down and focus on our humanity - but it’s not the camera lens that matters: it’s the act of paying attention.
How connected are you to yourself so you walk at your own rhythm through your days?
THIS INSPIRES.
“When we are mindfully aware of our surroundings, we are doing photography, even if we don’t have a camera with us.” – John Suler, psychologist, writer, photographer.
“Photography defines your relationship with the world — it defines you. Through photography, you understand who you are.”- Vincent Peters, photographer
“As I travel the world, one of the greatest surprises I have encountered has been that the people who seem wisest about the necessity of placing limits on the newest technologies are, often, precisely the ones who helped develop those technologies, which have bulldozed over so many of the limits of old. The very people, in short, who have worked to speed up the world are the same ones most sensitive to the virtue of slowing down.” - Pico Iyer, author, travel journalist
“Life opens itself up to you in ways that one can’t possibly imagine when you are doing nothing. This is the greatest medium of them all. When I was doing nothing, I dreamt up some of my most important ideas.” - Marina Abramović
A PLACE to UnRush.
ENEA Tree Museum in Switzerland
The Enea Tree is located in a breathtakingly beautiful 75’000 m2 park close to Lake Zürich and features approx. 50 trees, representing more than 25 varieties, some are over 100 years old, creating an aura of eternity and tranquility. On the entire Enea Landscape Architecture complex, there are over 3000 exclusive trees and shrubs. Since 2013, contemporary sculptures by renowned artists have also been exhibited in the park and its surroundings. These works of art enter into a subtle dialogue with the gardens and expand the overall design concept of Enea.
A PERSON who managed to UnRush.
Magdalena Ponurska – rewriting and rewiring her life
In my quest to find people who successfully managed to slow down and create a life and work that fit with their personal rhythm, I discovered a successful businesswoman who dared to tap into her power of slow. Magdalena Ponurska from Courage to Create on Substack. Her work life kept her too busy, missing out on experiencing her son growing up. One night, she got so fed up with herself for missing her six-year-old son’s performance, once again, and about a picture he drew in art class of his mother on the phone, not looking at him, that it pushed her over the edge to change something.
She asked herself this question: “What if I became the kind of parent who never missed another performance?” Her 20-minute writing experiment made her go deep to answer this question, which kicked off a sequence of changes. It slowed down her life, based on becoming aware of her values and what matters to her. She resigned from her well-paid corporate job, started a writing/coaching business, and spent time with her son. She realized what was missing in her life: “When a kid’s face lights up because he wants to share something with you and he knows—actually knows—you’ll be there.”
Magdalena had asked herself some tough questions. She started from the inside out. You need to take a moment for this. Pause. THAT is the POWER of slow.
A PRESCRIPTION to UnRush.
Grandma Hobbies
Grandma Hobbies….It’s a thing. Seriously.
In our rushing world filled with constant pressure, the value of traditional activities, like gardening, knitting, drawing, quilting, or crochet clubs, is gaining more attention. They got named Grandma hobbies, which doesn’t sound too sexy. But they do help reduce stress levels, foster social connections, and have a positive impact on your health, as research suggests. Which makes it sexy again. And there is indeed a resurgence of interest in these slow-paced pastimes among Gen Z – indicating how we feel about our hectic life, the non-stop scrolling and screen time, and our wellbeing and community.
So, pick your Grandma hobby and get your stress levels down!
A BOOK to UnRush and stretch your perspective
The Discovery of Slowness - by Sten Nadolny
At first glance, The Discovery of Slowness is at once a seafaring novel, a novel about adventure and the longing for it, and a coming-of-age novel. However, Sten Nadolny has rewritten the biography of the English sailor and North Pole explorer John Franklin (1786–1847) into a subtle study of time: slowness as an art form that gives meaning to the rhythm of life. Originally published in German in 1987, the book has been translated into all world languages and has since become a modern classic of German-language literature.
