Have you ever pointed a finger at someone else before later realizing that finger could just as well have been pointed in the opposite direction?

For years I believed that everyone moved at too fast a pace. When people did things faster than I did, I judged that they were impatient with slowness, while I was comfortable with it. People ate too fast. They drove too fast.

Now I’ve begun to notice that I, too, run at a fast pace. I may move slower than most people do in the external world, but I am impatient inside. I want answers now.

This week, in the middle of the third 2.5-hour Bones For Life online class, I was on my back on the floor listening to the instructor give instructions. The purpose of the class is to learn a variety of ways of moving your body so as to move straighter and with ease, something I long for!

As I lay there on the floor, taking my time moving my body in the prescribed manner, I noticed an excitement begin to build about the possibilities. I asked myself why I hadn’t taken the class several years ago when I first heard about it.

The instructor was asking questions now in a slow methodical voice. Is the left shoulder blade more in contact with the floor than the right? Is the left heel heavier on the floor that the right one? There are no right answers to these questions.

The instructor asked us to observe and remember our observations. Why? So we could compare them with the sensations we felt at the end of the class to see if there had been any changes.

My excitement about the possibilities of this practice clashed with the tortoise-like slowness of the practice. And I found myself wishing the instructor would just get it over with already. Why were they going so slow?

While laying there and paying attention to my body has become easier over time, it’s still not easy. Looking back, I can understand why it took me so long to sign up for this class. I am also gaining an understanding of how people who move fast through the world can’t help it, just like I see how I can run fast too.

Does your pointer finger curve backwards like mine? What has it taught you about yourself?

IMAGE: Look closely at the Guardian and you will notice the sun is illuminating the upper part and not the lower. When I noticed that – I should say when the wanna be photographer did – I rushe out to capture it. Hope you enjoy!