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Is Hurrying Stressful?

There's a difference between being stressed and being in a hurry. I'm a hurrier and I come from a long line of them.

My grandmother told a story about the Devil asking three of his associates how he could get more people to go to Hell. The first associate suggested telling them there's no Heaven. The second associate advised the Devil to tell them there's no God. No, growled the Devil to both men. He'd tried both of those ideas and neither of them had worked. Then the devil asked the third associate for her idea and she confidently replied that the Devil should tell them there's no hurry.

I rush in spite of repeatedly telling myself that haste makes waste. I hasten in spite of breaking dishes while trying to clear the dining table in one trip. I hasten even though I sometimes trip when I take two stairs at a time; and in spite of hastening, I get parking tickets because I try to do too many errands with too little money in the parking meter.

"Don't put off until tomorrow what you can do today" is the motto of us hurriers, but my husband isn't a member of the club. He's a prioritizer. He has suggested on more than one occasion that I wouldn't have to rush if I prioritized what I had to do. I have and I have four priorities - life, liberty, the pursuit of happiness and - everything else.

Everything else would be much easier to do if it weren't for the non-hurriers. You know who they are. They aren't just in my life. They're in your life too. Bank tellers, post office clerks and DMV workers are top on the list and we have to hurry even more to compensate for the time they waste.

"Life isn't a dress rehearsal" is a familiar saying and it's true. Life is a live show and the show must go on. On days when I'm slowed to a stop by a dead car battery or bad weather - very bad weather, I remind myself that it could be a lot worse. At least my live show hasn't been canceled.

Yes, I know I have to make time to stop and smell the roses. I'm going to schedule it into my day. I know what I have to do - and I'm in a hurry to get it done.

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KNIGHT PIERCE HIRST takes humorous looks at life. Take a minute to make yourself smile at http://knightwatch.typepad.com

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