Our damaging need for speed

We want to get from point A to B as quickly as possible, no matter the cost. Nothing—not even compassion—can get in the way of our need for speed. Representation pic

I have never needed a pizza in 30 minutes or less. There has simply been no occasion in my life where the arrival of food within a half hour or less has been a matter of life or death. I have ordered food in advance to make sure it arrives within a meal-related time period, or re-heated it seconds before consumption because that is what normal people can and ought to do. This is why I fail to understand all those advertisements for how quickly a restaurant or app can transfer meals from local kitchens to one's stomach within the shortest possible time.

It doesn't take much to realise and accept the fact that we are an impatient bunch of people. It's obvious within seconds of us stepping into a rickshaw, private vehicle, or bus. We all want to get from point A to B as quickly as possible, no matter what it costs us. It's why our city is notorious the world over for the use of horns loud enough to damage hearing. The police have tried everything in their power to get us to honk our horns less, but nothing has worked. We don't care about the presence or absence of hospitals either, which shows how nothing - not even compassion - can get in the way of our need for speed.

What we fail to understand is that our refusal to slow down inadvertently leads to an influence on public policy. Our plans related to infrastructure, for instance, are constantly geared towards cutting corners and making movement more efficient for vehicular traffic. It's why we are currently in the process of replacing one of the world's nicest views of the sea with a coastal road that will allow vehicle owners to drive a little faster. I can't think of too many cities anywhere that have so wilfully ignored the blessings that come with proximity to the water. Where promenades and parks could have flourished, we have opted for bridges and traffic lights instead. All because we want to go faster.

It's why we behave the way we do in airplanes too, the second those wheels touch tarmac. We can't wait until they roll to a stop, and air hostesses from over 100 countries have probably given up trying to reason with us at this point. We know getting those bags quickly won't make our trips through immigration any quicker, but we rush to open all overhead compartments nonetheless, convinced that saving a few seconds will improve the quality of our lives in the long run.

Perhaps the fault lies in how we are raised or, to be more precise, what we aren't taught during our formative years. I don't recall a single instance in all my years of school, college, or university, where I was encouraged to simply sit still. I was pushed from class to examination hall, lab to gym, deadline to deadline, along with thousands of students like me, constantly prodded to tick a series of tasks as quickly as possible before the final bell rang for the day.

Getting children to sit still is almost impossible, but that is precisely why it should be encouraged. As an adult, I sometimes think wistfully of how a few minor touches in those long-forgotten classrooms could have added so much value to the quality of school life. A little music every morning, for instance, or a few minutes of meditation between classes to get us into the habit of pausing now and again.

The need to take things easy has been advocated for decades, but is more critical than ever in the hyperactive times we live in. We have to ask ourselves why the need for pizza in 10 minutes or less exists, and who it is meant to serve. We have to think about the repercussions not just for the men and women tasked with providing this service or risk losing their salaries, but for those opting for these quick meals. What does it say about us when, as adults, we can't curb our appetites for more than a few minutes? How can a package from Amazon arriving at 11 am instead of 9 am affect our schedules to such an extent, and how did our parents and grandparents cope without these particular services?

Age does this wonderful thing of forcing our bodies to crawl even when our minds want to run. Some people think this is a bad thing. I think I'm starting to look forward to it though.

When he isn't ranting about all things Mumbai, Lindsay Pereira can be almost sweet. He tweets @lindsaypereira
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The views expressed in this column are the individual's and don't represent those of the paper.