 Check this out. I got the fireplace channel right in front of me. I'm on a little meditation cushion and it's Sunday night because I promised myself that I'd post every single Monday in 2024 and I'm not going to negotiate with myself. Even if the quality suffers a bit, I really wanted to do this for me and hopefully you're enjoying the videos so far this year. I was thinking about something this weekend. My uncle came over and he's from Quebec. For those of you in the States, Quebec is a province where they all speak French and well, a lot of them bilingual but the strange thing with the government is they're trying to keep it very French and putting in different laws that don't really help English evolve and mature in the province so it's kind of strange. But anyways, he came and I got us tickets to Beethoven's 6th symphony at the Toronto Symphony Orchestra at the Roy Thompson Hall downtown Toronto and we went to this symphony I think in 2019 and you don't forget something like that when you go with someone special, someone you love and you experience anything together. Those memories don't really fade that quick and I was so excited when I saw the tickets about a month ago I said Uncle Bob. Of course everyone's got an Uncle Bob. Uncle Bob, you're going to come to Ontario, to Toronto, I got us tickets. We'll see you on the 27th of January. We'll go to dinner and we'll take things slow and when I'm around certain people and I don't know about you but certain people and situations and events and things you plan give you permission to slow down. It's almost like we need permission from an event, a permission from somebody else around us with us to slow down. To do this alone for me it's actually pretty tough sometimes because there's always something more I can do. Downtown in the city people are always up and up early and going crazy and you know it's just hustle hustle hustle go go go and that's the energy you love from a city and speed is so relative. If I'm getting used to and completely submerged in that speed of a city and work and doing things the only reason I know what slow is is because I know what fast is. Just like if you're going 100 kilometers an hour on a highway or for you American weirdos with the imperial system 100 miles an hour, well if you pass someone that's going 20 miles an hour like man you feel like you're going fast. If you're going 100 and you pass someone who's going 96 it doesn't really feel that fast it's so relative. So my uncle came down and we go to the symphony and Beethoven starts and it starts on my music channel I think I did a reaction on one of those and I have like three records already of Beethoven six and one's just piano and it's one of my favorite symphonies of all time and in that scenario you can't do anything but slow down your mind your body this psychology the thoughts that are coming in whatever thoughts you have seem to be slower seem to be more positive seem to be more reassuring calmer content and that's mixed with though not just the music but the actual being an event itself that forces you to be present there's no other option phones aren't allowed right I'm not going to be doing email while I'm while I'm at the show I'm not going to be talking to the person next to me and I'm not going to be thinking of this week and the to-dos because the music forced me into the moment and Beethoven's pastoral symphony is about his time in nature and he wrote it a lot when he was in the woods in a natural environments I think it's in northern Vienna or wherever it was so the music is so natural and the reason I'm telling you this and sharing this story is I'm looking at everybody usually I focus on the orchestra just like you would focus on a band right if you're going to a show but in this time in this time I turn my head away from the orchestra and we are on the on the balcony and I'm scanning the theater and it was so freaking cool scanning the theater not to the person next to me or Uncle Bob right but across from me and below and every single person you saw was either incomplete contentment and just like they were just like this you know they're they're back kind of arch finally letting go of the entire week or the entire 60 years before them or 20 years before them and looking across there's other people and sometimes I was like leaned in like this and trying to like understand the music and some people you know their heads tilted like this as if trying to figure something out or or you know um in some kind of time machine back to the past or reliving some kind of soft memories and scanning the whole room and it's like everybody the thousand people in that theater have all slowed down and nothing else mattered in the world we all gave our fingers to the world in the kindest way possible we're just like nothing else is coming in this theater within this dome of presentness than us right here and this is all that matters nothing else gets to come in no negativity no worry no need for productivity no need to impress no need to express is all here and I felt it's so clearly in that moment and I've talked about this before on the channel for sure you've seen me as a as a mindfulness teacher and we do meditations here and we do meditations uh every week or sorry every month on patreon and sometimes I slack for sure I'll miss a meditation some days um it helps me to almost be forced into it and to cater the environment to that that really helps me so I wonder if your environment is really um inviting and offering presence to you you know what I'm saying my uncle Bob and Vanessa too they're as teachers both of them and me myself as a speaker I'm learning from them too to be so precise with language and the weight of words is so important so I wonder if your environment invites you and an invitation is like a call and it's calling you to slow down when you walk in that door after work the environment might be I got kids screaming I just picked them up from daycare I just picked them up from school it could be that you come back from work and and you're alone it could be that you come back from work and your partner is there or your roommates are there right your parents are there right you're still at home your parents are there brothers sisters um you have your grandparents living with you whatever it is is there a place is there a space when you come home before bed before work before school can you create a space that invites you to slow down where it's easier I have the plant right here the money tree I have my roman empire map which as weird as that is brings me peace although they're just slaughtered all of Europe I have these three pieces of art and they're parables from the new testament above my bed I have the history of the world the timeline in the kitchen there so when I go to the fridge I'm learning something about the history from it starts at 2500 bc all the way to the year 2000 I painted the wall in olive green uh I don't know what else I got this humidifier blowing some some mist to make the place cozy I got the old as I told you this another uh this is just me sharing ideas and what works for me got a couple bibles here I got a chess set I got my ps5 here got an old record player from the 70s an old receiver from the 70s my guitars so just by me saying this and plants over here just by me saying this can you see how that could be inviting for for peace and how that can be easier for me to slow down after the rush of the day and after I've been sitting here for a while and whether it's watching tv listening to music cooking whatever it is resting here before you know it I want speed again and I want socialization again and I want to get on the street car again and I want to go to the office again and socialize and build a business and and help people and get back on coaching calls and but I'm not able to do that and appreciate the speed if I haven't appreciated the slowness and I won't be able to appreciate the slowness slowness unless I've appreciated the speed and been in the speed in two different environments to compare and contrast and to really see speed is relative and life is relative so I wonder as homework this week my friends if it's as easy as putting on the fireplace channel like I got on the tv and turning up the volume I'd love to share a playlist I will one time in future episodes of the things I do when I'm extremely anxious when anxiety comes at me like a freight train and you think you know in those moments Scott you probably meditate you probably go to the gym you probably do some some big breathing techniques hell no when it's really at me I put on this youtube channel and it was um medieval construction sounds I swear to god and I'm on this coach behind me right and it's medieval construction sounds of just hammers and nails and and the sound of like police and ropes and that's what works for me at though in those moments and I wonder what works for you I wonder what you can change in your environment to bring you and invite you to slow down it's easy to be fast it's easy to get caught up in the speed and it's good that we get caught up in the speed because that's what life invites us to do that's modern society I know some of you work your asses off through the week you do this channel and my work and coaching isn't just for the elite that's not what I believe I'm called to do and why I'm here on on earth for this time um I like to help as many people as I can and it would feel strange if I was only speaking to professionals who make a million dollars a year that are really stressed no stress comes to all of us in fact uh more people who are low income and who are struggling to make ends meet and if that is you and you're working your butt off and you feel like there's no time in the day for yourself you're the one I'm going to use the word deserve deserves it the most needs it the most should prioritize that the most and the slowing down can be as easy and we're going to do something in a few minutes together can be as easy as before you get out of the car to the factory where it's going to be non-stop before you get out of the train to go to the office before you get out of the bus to go to school before you you know right after you drop off the kids at daycare and you get back in the car to then go to work before you even go to your home office and maybe your office is at the kitchen table maybe you're in a condo like me and you have a small space it's the before you engage in everything that the day is going to offer can you take 30 seconds 30 seconds I'm not going to say 3 seconds and try to sell it like some fast infomercial like all it takes is 10 seconds a day to get in the best shape of your life I can't lie to you all it's going to take time but 30 seconds is enough for you busy bodies and and you did I say busy bodies that that comes from mom and dad such a busy body for those of you who are so busy man 30 seconds with me right now because at this point in time my ankles are so sore right now because I'm in the seated position but on my knees so I'm going to do a foot stretch all right you're almost thinking even as a kid and we're going to talk whoop now I'm too high we're going to talk about in next episodes if you can find a thread that's been with through with you through your whole life that's going to be the next one remind me in the comments Scott say this on your next episode the thread of the common thread through your entire life until now we're going to find it and it's not going to be that hard to find next week and it's going to bring you I guarantee you a sort of contentment and the knowledge if you're on the right path or not or on the path that's going to be really cool I can't wait so wherever you are right now if this is morning if this is evening if this is a time for you to slow down do something with me if you're in a rush right now and there's no time put me on pause check me out later we're just going to do something real real quick okay and I do this sometimes again on our monthly calls you know the link to patreon it's in the description it's affordable I make these things accessible because that's what I want to do I do not want exclusivity I want inclusivity and that's I know that's a buzzword today but the people on there are so special and if they're all listening I can't wait to see you in February and thank you all for your support for funding these videos all the patrons you know who you are I'm speaking right to you your selflessness is never forgotten and you know I've said this since 2014 when I uploaded a video and it took years to get to an audience every patron that's ever given to me I never forget you you are with me and I take you with me through the week so thank you from the bottom of my heart what we're going to do here is for just 15 seconds follow me right now watch the video or if you're listening on the being human podcast on Spotify iTunes you're going to take five fingers each hand and you're going to kind of like you're squeezing like you're squeezing a couple boobs but it would be too hard so you know just doing it like this okay that's too hard implants maybe less nerve nerve endings there okay so we're getting off topic what's going on all right so ready for 15 seconds open your hands squeeze open squeeze open squeeze really tight though really tight open squeeze open squeeze open squeeze open squeeze really tight now make fists open fist open fist open fist open fist open fist and I guarantee you just keep going keep going your forearms are now burning I guarantee your wrist oh yes and where did that worry go for a minute you're just in your hands right now you're in your forearms don't worry about it keep going open close open close open close open close my forearms are burning and you know what you're already like Scott you lied to me this was supposed to be 30 seconds yeah I lied you don't trust me now it's okay okay stop hands on your lap close your eyes focus on your hands a sensation the release in your hands the release in your wrists the release in your forearms everything down to the very tips of your index finger tip of your middle finger tip of your ring fingers your pinky fingers your thumbs your entire palms on the left and right hand feel how much they've become softened and calm exercise but such a release now there it is and just like your hands and your fingers you invite you the rest of your body to follow suit follow that feeling you just match what your hands feel match that in your shoulders match that in your chest match that in your neck match that and your eyelids match that softness in your forehead there you go and now move down match that in your thighs and your knees and your calves and your feet and slowly open your eyes now if you take that openness and just feel your wrist if you really did that with me I'm feeling it and you take that openness we didn't close ourselves up sometimes people feel like when you slow down you get closed because you're saying note everything and I got to shut myself down not at all you can be slow take things calmly but just as we open up the body and you match that hand sensation you're open you are open but you can go about your day or your evening whatever time of day it is slower and when you're ready and quote unquote if you're bored and you're ready to go into that fast environment again get back into work get back into the groove follow your gut with that if you're bored super bored and you're like I'm meditating I'm just so bored I want to go do something go do something but you're like but I got to practice why are you practicing if you know that you have to practice for a specific reason you know I used to think everybody should meditate 10 minutes a day do this some people don't need to if you need high stimulation and your body needs high stimulation go get it because I guarantee you once you get that high stimulation you'll be craving some low right and when you're craving the low do what we just did slow down take time for yourself create an environment that's soothing to you and when you're done craving that you're going to crave the fast again so some homework this week until I see it next week one 30 seconds just what we did open up the hands get into the body this is the best way to get into the body it's the breath and this movement here it's so good because it's fast and really burns okay then you lay your hands on your lap wherever and you feel that and match it okay let's call it's called the match second thing is your environment inviting is there a corner can you create a shrine and I don't even care if the shrine is your shower make that your shrine put an artificial plant in your shower put a little green in there put some lavender in there get some you can get some dry eucalyptus and you put in the shower beautiful so cheap go on amazon go get yourself something you can do that put on the fireplace channel channel for three minutes when you get home before you start the second half of the day the evening when you got to cook you got to clean you got to laundry you got to you know decompress so I can't tell you what to do here figure out what's works for you I have my records you know I have my old stuff I got Rome in the back I got plants I got different things here what works for me might not work for you trust yourself like what you like trust what calms you down and soothes you and do that and I guarantee slowing down won't be as intimidating or difficult God bless you my friends I'll see you in the comments because I respond as many as I can and I read them all now God bless and thank you so much for joining me on this channel every single Monday on the Being Human podcast and Scott St. Marie's channel this is all about being human I hope this helps you slow down and and protect yourself from the chaos at times bye