Pace Your Own Race

| Phoebe Domingo

“To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all.” – Oscar Wilde.

Picture yourself in the middle of a busy hallway, street, or your very own campus and look around you. In every silhouette, you will see people moving around in urgency. Now, each and everyone one of us has one goal, one destination, one path. But why does it seem like everyone’s rushing it—you’re rushing it.

All of us are dreamers, but only a few pause and live in what’s here—in what’s present. In a world obsessed with a pace that’s so difficult to catch-up, the journey is often forgotten for the promise of a “perfect” future.

It is upholding young adults like us to be stuck in this temporary cycle of happiness. People often put their peace on hold until they finish their degree, or secure their dream job, or whatever it is that holds their desires. Which makes life into an endless waiting room.

We often overlook the true sense of life. Those moments where you lie in bed after an exhausting day, at the lunch table where you laugh it out with your friends. These exact moments where we wished it never stopped. When we constantly live for an uncertain tomorrow, today becomes nothing more than an obstacle to overcome.

Am I okay? Or is it just my mind?

One of these factors is our own mental stability. It is something we need to take care of because it affects how we see ourselves and deal with the world that revolves around us.

Many forget their own worth just because of exhaustion. Burnout in activities and pushing themselves to do harder. Some even adapt the mindset of “your maximum is someone’s minimum” which pushes them harder until nothing’s left for your own.

One’s maximum effort might simply be waking up and showing up on an exhausting day—and that alone is something to celebrate.

Instead of comparing your own accomplishments to another person’s starting line ignores the hidden weight each individual carries. Real care for your mental wellbeing starts when you stop measuring success through another person’s eyes filled with expectations. You must learn how to appreciate what progress you’ve made, and little by little you’ll notice how far you’ve come.

The REALignment

Mental well-being isn’t about having a perfect life. It’s about accepting that not everything will go as planned and knowing when to give ourselves a break. We shouldn’t push ourselves too hard just to keep up with others because everyone has their own pace.

Many of us wait until everything is done before allowing ourselves to rest or feel proud. But we don’t have to wait for everything to be okay before choosing to be happy. Sometimes, we just need to appreciate where we are right now.

Our lives consists of these small moments of intergrity—the willingness to take a break and the choice to give ourselves grace when our batteries run low. It isn’t about how fast we reach the finish line, but about honoring the person navigating the path each day.

So, in the end it doesn’t really matter about how fast we got to the finish line. It’s about the baby steps along the way—it’s about living right now in this moment.