How many words per minute do you speak?

Every morning the city wakes up in its own way. First the street lamps go out, then the bakery on the corner smells of fresh bread. The first buses carry sleepy passengers into the centre. In the café by the park, the barista already knows the regulars: a cappuccino with no sugar for one, a tea with lemon for another. Children hurry to school, and dogs happily pull their owners out for a walk. By eight the streets get louder. Someone is talking on the phone, someone is laughing, someone walks in silence. But if you stop for a minute and listen, you can hear the rhythm of the city. It is a lot like speech: it has its own pace, pauses and stresses. When we rush, words blur together and the thought gets lost. When we speak calmly, we are easier to follow. So read this text the way you usually tell your friends a story: no slower and no faster than you are used to.