Random yet thought out.

I was talking with a good friend last night about life when we came across the idea of life as a turtle. Turtles are one of the longest living animals on the planet, one recently lived to be 350 years young. If you think about the life of a turtle as a whole you would find very little stress, except for the stress from an often predator looking for something to eat. The outer shell protects against most common daily threats while the actual body of a turtle has a soft inner core.
So the discussion went on about how humans are killing ourselves with the stress that we let devour our lives. It seems that the human race is dying at younger ages from this stress, adding to heart conditions and many other ailments. This attitude is most prevalent in the North America culture which I call a fast food lifestyle. In this day in age we live so fast paced that we don't take time to enjoy the small things. Small things such as cooking a meal, walking under a star filled sky, or just breathing. By not partaking in these small things, or just being so preoccupied by other so called MORE IMPORTANT things we forget the real joys of life and find ourselves falling victim to this routine. Working for something, but what?
I found myself talking about my own mind and what goes through it everyday. I find myself always pondering the future and what my next move will be. I have lived by the ma to carpi Diem, and living a life of moments. I'm torn between the life that I have been living, and a life of materialistic value. Madonna's lyrics, living in a material world has never been so clear in meaning, until now. It all makes sense, or does it?
Thinking about the future of what ifs, I began talking about the Buddhist beliefs of running your own mind, and not letting your own mind run you. The state of a relaxed mind is the healthiest way to live. A friend once wrote me a note that said, "don't sweat the petty things in life, pet the sweaty things." So true.
Life will always continue running.
Live in the moments, and make these moments last a lifetime.
Back to the turtle analogy; human beings are a lot like turtles, in the sense that as long as we have a strong outer shell and maintain the physical self the soft insides will stay protected and healthy.

note. Turtles are a common sign of luck in some cultures.