Sometimes, The Universe Just Wants You To Stop

Nik Macmillan

Your car breaks down or get a flat tire.

You order food at a restaurant and it needs 15-20 minutes to cook.

You get a basket of groceries but there’s a long line at the counter.

You come early to class but your teacher is late.

You get on a bus but it’s still waiting for other passengers before it leaves the terminal.

You arrive early at the airport but your flight is delayed.

You call your phone company to ask why your bill amount is so high but the operator puts you on hold.

You ride an elevator to the 24th floor but it has to stop for 5 more times so others can get off on their respective floors.

You want to ride the roller coaster but it closes for 1 hour for maintenance.

You’re running late but you trip over something and fall down.

You lose money or something of great value and you have to find a way to tell your parents or cope up with the loss.

You’re rushing a paper and your computer crashes and you just stare at the screen hoping it’s a prank or a joke.

You’re walking home and it rained heavily and you have to find a tree to get under because you left your umbrella at the coffee shop.

You graduate high school or college and you have absolutely no idea what to so next.

You get rejected from a job you’re applying to or you get fired from a job you already have.

A friend moves away and you have to get used to not seeing them every day.

Your lover breaks up with you and you have to throw away your hopes and plans of a future with them.

You did all you could but your baby won’t stop crying in the middle of the night.

A family member gets sick and you have to leave from school or work so you can be with them at the hospital.

You lose a loved one and you don’t know how to function without them.


This is the universe telling you to stop.
It’s saying that you’re moving too fast in your life, haunted by your past and worried about your future.

Sometimes, you just need to look around and see what is in your present.

In any of these times, just look around. Look left and right. Look behind you. Look above and down below. Look right in front of you. Maybe the universe wants to show you something.

Maybe you’ll look left and you’ll see the sunset for the first time in months, because your work keeps you inside all day and you only clock out by night time.

Maybe you’ll look right and you’ll see a field of flowers that you’re allowed to pick to bring home to your mother or your grandmother or your best friend or your lover.

Maybe you’ll look up and see an airplane and you’ll make a wish because you thought it was a shooting star.

Maybe you’ll look behind you and you’ll see the ocean with its waves crashing on the shore and you can’t seem to remember the last time you felt sand under your feet.

Maybe you’ll look down on the ground and you’ll see a quarter and think about giving it to your favorite niece or nephew.

Maybe you’ll look in front of you and you’ll see a double rainbow with all its colors visible to your eyes, and suddenly getting wet in the rain wasn’t so bad after all.

Maybe you’ll find the answers to your problems.

Maybe you’ll figure out the secrets of the universe.

Maybe you’ll find out why you wake up in the morning every day.

Maybe you’ll realize who you want to grow old with.

Maybe you’ll finally understand life.

But first, the universe needs you to stop. Thought Catalog Logo Mark

Addicted to coffee, the smell of books, and the sound of ocean waves.

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