We live in a non-stop nation. It is mapped in gridlock with schedules and deadlines, appointments and never-ending responsibilities that dictate every second of our short lives. Every day, we face a flood of American consumer culture: lights, cameras and action in climax. The average Joe is exposed to 3,000 advertisements a day. Whether we boat or float this flood, we are inevitably cast away, the shoreline nowhere in sight.

The question arises: Can living such a fast-paced life be healthful? When bombarded with relentless propaganda, is there any escape to think straight? With our days devoted to wakeup, class, class, eat, work, gym, eat, sleep – are we making the most of the gifts we’ve been given? Are we living, or are we simply alive? Don’t get me wrong: of course sh*t gets done, but ultimately, isn’t all that’s done – just sh*t?

Good ol’ Merriam-Webster defines “flood” as “a rising and overflowing,” “an overwhelming quantity of volume,” but this is no ordinary flood. The flood our society rests on is one with the power to numb our senses and dull our nerves, strip us of our energy and plunder any passion we might have had. All hail consumerism. We live in a one-man world: “Me.”

People are willing to complain and demand but never to act, never to go out of their way to get what they want. This can translate into something as monumental as protesting war or something as simple as decrying four straight nights of sushi at the dining commons. In the bubble of higher education, our generation feels as though it’s at the tip of the Taser.

In reality, most of us are making out, making food or making drunken mistakes. Sure, throughout the school week we’re denouncing racism, demanding rights to gay marriage or drawing up the next big revolution, but it’s all just lip service.

How many people can you accuse of being all talk? It’s a tricky equation because when you point your finger, the other three are always directed right back at you. If stuck in a flood that does nothing but numb, do we drown?

It’s simple – keep your head above water. In other words, knowing what you’re up against is vital. The world is at a tilt and with no actual relation; the media is too, putting a spin on everything they toss up, causing us to look at things the way they hope and scheme we will.

American culture revolves around high-demand, wanting new-this and needing newer-that. As soon as you’ve got the latest model, you’re a proud owner of yesterday’s product. And it’s not just the media. Collective society has branded a big fat stamp of approval on the way a well-behaved intellectual should live their life. It involves school, work and a ton of money. Any life led that strays from this norm is one in vain. Is that not a bit ridiculous?

Even for those angsty with ambition, who have grown to love their daily schedules and treasure their to-do lists, is time needed to stop and breathe? How else can you know where you’re going if you’re unaware of what you’re passing through, where you’ve been, what direction you’re headed in?

Of course there are those moments in life when the world naturally slows down, like in the event of a really, really good kiss – the kind you kind of sink into, like a pair of slippers you’ve broken in to feel just right. Life gives us that time in limbo to remind us why we are what we are: the most advanced creatures on Earth, the most apt to feel and ponder.

Sometimes moving fast is a good thing. If we didn’t treasure the art of the speedy, food would be cold, planes would delay and a lot of people would be unnaturally pissed off.

The point is to keep your feet on the ground amidst the flood of neon and subliminal messages and to take most everything at face value. I have a brain as does every one of you reading this, and where mine is wrinkled yours may not be; where yours is telling you that you’re tired, mine might be wondering what I’ll have for dinner.

There’s no reason for the flood to numb us all to feel alike. Rather than sacrificing quality for speed, making actual change in real time seems a much more favorable fate. In a world more booming, more productive and more overwhelming than ever, taking it slow has never felt better.

Solmaaz Yazdiha is a Collegian columnist. She can be reached at [email protected]