A Slower Story
We live the stories we tell. So when I decided to try my hand at being a writer, I did so because I wanted to participate in the future. In hindsight, I’m surprised it took me as long as it did. I pursued science writing because I believe the world we live in is shaped as much by stories as it is our collective understanding of science. Each wields an immense influence.
As a science writer invested in our future, climate change looms large on the horizon. The more I read and the more I write about climate change, the more I keep returning to the same idea; the story of growth at all costs is in disharmony with the planet and life more broadly.
Often, I’m afraid we may find we are at the tip of our own spear, incapable of hitting pause before pause hits us. If the hyper-localized threat of a global pandemic, set against the backdrop of catastrophic climate change, doesn’t inspire meaningful collective change, what will?
Having born witness to addiction up close, healing only truly begins when the addict feels permission to slow down. To stop running. To stop denying. To simply to catch their breath. And like an addict, rather than reckon with the intimate web of economic, ecological, social ills in realtime, so often we opt only to become aware in hindsight.
It’s as if humanity has been rushing since recorded history without stopping to ask, rushing towards what? While controversial, it’s no longer hyperbole to say we may very well facilitate our demise by our own hand. So then perhaps it’s time we reimagine what a slower world might look like?
It’s important to recognize the exponential grind is intrinsically established within a colonial/capitalist framework. Many cultures have celebrated a slower passage of time in favor of savoring life without clinging to it. Tricia Hersey of the Nap Ministry advocates for rest as a “radical threat to the system that feeds on the grind.” Originally from Chicago but living in Atlanta, Hersey’s work with the Nap Ministry mixes performance art with activism in service in personal liberation. It’s inspiring.
Reflecting on Tricia’s call for change through inaction, I am reminded of similar advice I received during a wilderness first aid course: Before acting, survey the science, and smoke a cigarette. Parroting the wisdom of prior generations verbatim (hence the smoking), our instructor was keen to point out the cigarette held no value other than the time it afforded us to assess the situation. In other words, it forced you to slow down.
While the last thing any of us need is a cigarette, it’s high time we take a beat before we drive this thing off a cliff. I mean really, what are we striving for if not to nurture this life-giving planet for as many generations as possible? While there will always be those opposed to the slow lane, we’ll see which proves more resilient.
