“I thought that all of my obstacles were behind me.
“Walking around like I’m made out of diamond.
“I tripped and fell and it reminded me to move over and let the angels guide me.”–India.Arie
India.Arie‘s album Voyage to India came out in 2002, but it wasn’t until 10 years that I truly appreciated this project, especially this track. “Slow Down” will forever have a special place in my heart, because it caused an epiphany of sorts at one of my lowest moments. I talk about this a good bit on this site, I see, but graduating from Loyola University Maryland, and not having a job for months on end. Seeing other classmates and people who had graduated before me getting work and living out their dreams made me feel like a complete bum.
I listened to this entire album, and this song specifically, one day back around this time, and heard it in a whole new light. I realized, up to that point, life had been fairly easy for me besides dealing with school, honestly. This was my first real obstacle, and I was running and moving around too fast trying to find a job, ANY job, just to make money. Going to interviews for jobs that I had no business interviewing for real. I realize now, that if I had focused my energy more on my writing back then, God knows where I would be right now. But everything happens like it’s supposed to, and God’s got my back, so I’m taking things in stride.
This song is constantly a reminder for me that going faster doesn’t necessarily mean you’re going to make it to your goals faster. In all actuality, the faster that you go, the more likely you are to mess things up. Sometimes, you need to just take a breath, SLOW DOWN, be patient, and focus on the right opportunities, people, and moments for you. That’s regarding your career, your love life, your side hustle, whatever you have going on. Don’t rush things thinking you have to have it all together right now! The race truly isn’t given to the swift, but to the one who endures.
End of spiel. Here’s the actual song HA!
Imperfectly B 