I’m happily enjoying my “Chautauqua Fix” – one week in summer that I return to the Chautauqua Institution in Western New York for a summer diet of lectures, concerts, and ice cream on the village green. Coming here is like boarding a time machine, back to the turn of the 20th century.
Sure, there are IPhones here and IPads. But there is also a violinist performing for pleasure on Bestor Plaza, Chautauqua’s village green, and families strolling with kids and dogs. In this place where automobiles are allowed only for unloading and then banned to the outside lots, it’s possible to reconnect with the Power of Slow.
But even here, in this turn-back-time paradise, we wrestle with scheduling overload.
I laugh as my friend Robin, here for the first time, tries to map out a reasonable schedule from an intimidating list of opportunities. A poet, she’s pledged to spend some time writing this week.
I understand the dilemma. It’s easy to want to be in two places at once. This afternoon, at 3:30, there’s an hour of poetry reading at the Literary Arts Center. And at 4, a program at the Jewish Center called “Shalom, Y’all.” Maybe a little of both? Anything called “Shalom, Y’all” is too good to miss.
One Response
Ah yes! The Power of Slow, that delicious state of mindful living in which a leisurely pace is the norm. Congrats on your escape to the 20th Century. Would love to hear more about your work as well!