"The slow walk"

Short story for you and your children.

It was January 1st, the village head's new year resolution was to walk along the river bank every day.

As he set out walking at a leisurely pace enjoying the sights, the sounds and the smells along the river, he noticed a few walking past him but did not think much about it.

Next day, he walked little faster but still noticed both young and old race past him, it was starting to bother him. That night, he spent hours reading a book titled "Olympic race walking technique" from the village library.

It was day 3, the village head was in high spirits as he had cracked the village walking code. He started walking at a brisk pace but still no luck, every one walked past him with minimal effort. Self doubt started to creep in, he wondered whether he was the "slowest" in the entire village.

Determined to make a difference on day 4, he started running but within minutes fellow villagers were over taking him. At that moment, by chance he turned back and noticed that lot of people were behind him too.

That was his aha moment, he felt silly about the whole ordeal. All these days, he was only looking ahead and by default only noticed people racing past him and let that affect his mindset and confidence. A simple act of looking back restored his mental peace and confidence.

Does who or what is ahead bother you? Have you given your best? Change your perspective, look back and you have come a long way!


Thought experiment:
Evolution has wired us to look ahead and push ourselves to win the race (Survival of the fittest). What if humans had four eyes? two more at the back of your head, it makes you wonder whether humans would have evolved into more content and less anxious species.

As crazy as it may seem, four eyes have played a part in reducing anxiety in the recent past (Link in the comments section below).

What do you think?

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