just spend an hour or two with a child.

[keannu]

This is criticizing people's rushing attitude in life.
1.Does "break down" mean "get out of order" or "come apart into pieces"? The translation goes as the latter, but I think it's the former.
2.Does "to shift your life into a low gear" mean a purpose or a result? The translation goes as a purpose, but I think it's a result.
3.What lesson does it try to give with this? If you spend sometime with a child, what do you realize?

is56ex)Life is one big rush. We want fast food to eat quickly, fast cars to get us there sooner, fast money to spend freely... You can accomplish a lot in the fast lane, but rarely do you enjoy youself, and what happens when you hit that inevitable hairpin turn?....Life's curves gives us two choice: slow down or break down. Don't wait for something terrible to happen to shift your life into a low gear. If you've forgotten how, just spend an hour or two with a child.

[5jj]

1.Does "break down" mean "get out of order" or "come apart into pieces"? The translation goes as the latter, but I think it's the former.
Definition #4.
2.Does "to shift your life into a low gear" mean a purpose or a result? The translation goes as a purpose, but I think it's a result.
It's a simple movement. I don't see how a translation can involve a result or a purpose.Of course, if you move from high gear to low gear, being in low gear will be a result of that move, but I don't think that's a very helpful way of looking at moves and changes.
3.What lesson does it try to give with this? If you spend sometime with a child, what do you realize?
What do you think?

5

[keannu]

Thanks, adults are rushing as they are stained in their mind to be selfish, but children are innocent not to rush, I guess.

what lesson does it try to give with this? If you spend sometime with a child, what do you realize?
What do you think?

[keannu]

Just want to know a little bit further. This is criticizing people's tendency to rush by comparing to hairpin turn. If you make a hairpin turn(U-turn), due to its crazy high speed, could you collide with the opposite side's car if you get off your side? I don't understand the colliding situation described here.

ex) Life is one big rush. We want fast food to eat quickly, fast cars to get us there sooner, fast money to spend freely... You can accomplish a lot in the fast lane, but rarely do you enjoy youself, and what happens when you hit that inevitable hairpin turn? You frantically try to slow down speed, suddenly turn to the right, and stay calm while you're about to collide with an oncoming car, all the while screaming. Where did this come from? Sound familiar? But if you hand't been going so fat, you might have been able to avoid the accident; or maybe you would have noticed the warning signs a mile back. Life's curves gives us two choice: slow down or break down. Don't wait for something terrible to happen to shift your life into a low gear. If you've forgotten how, just spend an hour or two with a child.

[5jj]

Keannu, as I think I have said before, you sometimes try to analyse passages as though the writer had spent hours considering what words/expressions s/he should use. Most of the time, most of us just churn out the words. If we are writing for posterity, or delivering a speech that may be recorded, we (with the help of friends/advisers) deliberately spend time on deciding exactly what we'll say.

Normally, the words just come out. Any attempts to analyse them too deeply are doomed.

[SoothingDave]

I don't care if the road is straight or curvy or if you drive on the right side or the left side. If you cross the center of the road you could collide with a car heading the other way. Why is that hard to understand?