Today something happened which surprised me, and made me pause for thought. The office where I work has escalators (that's moving stairways for anyone not familiar with the term) which join the various levels. As I joined the escalator on the ground floor, I noticed a maintenance man working with an "emergency stop" button, but paid no attention. Normally I walk up the escalator (you know, "always in a hurry", and in any case you should try walking down an up escalator) but today I just stood there. My excuse is that I was holding a cup of tea and I didn't want to spill it.
Naturally, I just stood there, and, lost in thought, I waited to reach the next floor. Unexpectedly, suddenly, I found that I was not going up. The feeling was strangely disorientating. Then I felt I shouldn't be standing there, with all those other people behind me (who were doing exactly the same thing).Of course, what had happened was that the maintenance man had inadvertently stopped the escalator. I don't know if he pressed the button, or did something else.
The thoughts which this minor incident prompted were:
- That "standing on the escalator" or similar (in)activities gives a great opportunity to stop and gather your thoughts, and
- That the sensation I had when the escalator had stopped was most peculiar.
Take time to smell the roses! Or meditate or whatever...
