The Pace of Inner Peace

CJ
Dec 22, 2025
2 min read

If you could fast-forward past the colder, darker months, would you?

Yesterday was the Winter Solstice, marking a gentle transition to longer days. It’s a subtle change—unnoticeable if we didn’t have a calendar to make its threshold—but it’s just enough to get us through the winter.

Actor/creator Matt Rodin’s latest instalment of The Fourth Wall (a blog/newsletter on creative insight) was about pacing within stories. He suggested that speed and pace aren't one in the same. He explained that pace is more nuanced than speed, and allows us to work through complex scenarios with care, rather than pushing through the discomfort just to get to the end.

"Speed is just a measurement. Pace is an experience—shaped by how the brain processes time, information, and attention." — Matt Rodin

🎭 I think of winter as the bulk of the second act in most musicals.

At the top of the act, the pace typically slows to allow the audience time to process all the information they consumed during act 1’s setup and conflict development. This is where things can get darker and uncertain—how will the protagonist untangle themselves from the web of events they’ve just gone up against? As the audience, we quietly root for them and hold onto hope, even on the steepest slope of their journey.

I was reflecting on what songs from the various versions of my Christmas cabaret best capture this, and ‘Someone Else's Story’ came to mind. It’s from Chess: The Musical, and it makes me think of walking through the dark, carrying a light that might be dim, but is enough to guide just one step at a time.

🎭 Have you heard any of the music from Chess?

It’s currently revived on Broadway and has a stunning score, written by ABBA's Benny Andersson/Björn Ulvaeus, and Tim Rice.

Here's me performing this song in 2023, in my cabaret Jingle Belle.

In my interpretation, my character Ruby is conflicted between her commitments to others and herself. She carefully examines her priorities, and remembers to foster self-compassion.

This season, don’t expect more of yourself than circumstances give room for. Give yourself grace, and move forward only as quickly as the light you hold allows.