She wasn’t very alive.

This old Russian lady.

That walked past me at the speed of a turtle.

But she moved—and I congratulate her for that.

Getting older and battling your own body and gravity is no easy thing, I tell you that.

I admired her determination.

Because as long as you keep walking you move forward and make progress.

Isn’t that why we all are doing it?

To make progress?

I’ll leave the answer up to your discretion (and I might come back to it at a later time).

See, sometimes you want to zoom in on a situation and slow down.

Like Lionel Messi who sees the game of soccer slower than everybody else on and around the pitch.

Watch him during the match. Not the ball. Him.

While 21 players sprint around him, Messi walks. His head keeps turning — left, right, left again — even when the ball is still on the other side of the pitch. He looks at his teammates. He looks at the defenders. He looks at the empty grass between them. By the time someone passes him the ball, he has already seen everything. One touch and he is gone — into the gap nobody else noticed. It feels like he sees the game in slow motion. But he doesn't. He just did his looking before the ball arrived.

When you walk you can notice fully.

When you run you can react barely.

It’s easy to mistake a slow person for being slow-minded.

When the old Russian lady walks like a turtle, maybe she is scanning the grass in front and the people around her, like a genius on the pitch.

Maybe she knows what everyone else who is running is not noticing: When you slow down you zoom in and are in the moment and cherish the moment. A moment where you are with yourself and the outside doesn’t matter. Where it’s you and your thoughts playing ping-pong, or soccer for that matter.

Your thoughts might be inspired by Messi’s dribbles on the pitch, or by an old Russian lady, or by that book in front you while you’re lying on grass — happy, feeling alive, and shining like brilliant star.

So when the world is too fast for you and you stop noticing things, and it makes you miserable because everyone else is having fun and you’re not, it’s because you haven’t had your daily dose of Summer Smile ⭐️.

Slow down and be happy with your thoughts.

Your happiness deserves a smile.

A Summer Smile → https://summersmilebook.com

naii.io

p.s. it’s not lost on me that i still owe you an explanation of a woman with hip movement (hint: my future wife)