Time and time again in the here and now.
Chronological time. It is linear, it is progressive, it moves forward, it can be measured. If it could not, watches, calendars, computers, would not exists as we know them.
Then there is another layer of time - the time you may spend with God, nature, your soulmate, a dear friend, in prayer and contemplation, in silence. THAT time (and this is only my opinion) is much less easily measured. Time flies by when you are in the midst of a project that you are involved in and passionate about. Time ceases to exist when your soul is embraced by the transcendent love of God. These moments either zoom past or the importance we invest in the other type of time disappears.
There are occasions when our experience of time is that it is progressing excruciatingly slowly. The last 1/2 hour of school, the last hour of work, the time between the separation and final divorce, the recovery from the grieving process.
My life has been spent in conflict with watch time. A massage will take as long as it takes and no less. Listening to someone bare their soul, revealing their inmost being will take as long as it takes.
I reluctantly acknowledge that there are wonderful people in the world who run strictly by the clock.... for whom a late arrival is a personal insult and and character flaw. I also know of people who have no recognition of clock time at all and jeopardize any personal credibility by being 2+ hours late for everything.
I am of two minds. One half says that we as a nation are miserable because we obsess on time. There is a reminder of time progression on our wrist, on the cell phone, on the wall clock(s), on the computer, at each side of the bed, in the shower, in the car, on bank signs. If we are always rushing to catch up or be ahead, is it any wonder that we are often tired, anxious, overburdened, short tempered, short sighted.
The other half of my mind strives to appreciate that there are people for whom lack of punctuality is tantamount to a lack of respect or interest or worth in the value of them and their regard for time. I don't want to be offensive or dismissive of the feelings or worth of another human being. Life would also be chaotic if there were no standards, benchmarks or parameters for appointments and functions.
We are an assortment, are we not: some people measure worth on a dress code, others by timeliness, others by credentials, still others by assumed standards of social acumen, others by dialect or vocabulary, others by experience. You must know (or be) a "Morning" person or an "evening" person. Each functions best at a given time of day and fades at the other half.
How can we honor chronological time without it overtaking our lives and our spirits? I don't know.
Do you have any ideas on this subject? Drop a comment to this post or a line to share at: deaconj@geraniumfarm.org. Thanks for the input.
Then there is another layer of time - the time you may spend with God, nature, your soulmate, a dear friend, in prayer and contemplation, in silence. THAT time (and this is only my opinion) is much less easily measured. Time flies by when you are in the midst of a project that you are involved in and passionate about. Time ceases to exist when your soul is embraced by the transcendent love of God. These moments either zoom past or the importance we invest in the other type of time disappears.
There are occasions when our experience of time is that it is progressing excruciatingly slowly. The last 1/2 hour of school, the last hour of work, the time between the separation and final divorce, the recovery from the grieving process.
My life has been spent in conflict with watch time. A massage will take as long as it takes and no less. Listening to someone bare their soul, revealing their inmost being will take as long as it takes.
I reluctantly acknowledge that there are wonderful people in the world who run strictly by the clock.... for whom a late arrival is a personal insult and and character flaw. I also know of people who have no recognition of clock time at all and jeopardize any personal credibility by being 2+ hours late for everything.
I am of two minds. One half says that we as a nation are miserable because we obsess on time. There is a reminder of time progression on our wrist, on the cell phone, on the wall clock(s), on the computer, at each side of the bed, in the shower, in the car, on bank signs. If we are always rushing to catch up or be ahead, is it any wonder that we are often tired, anxious, overburdened, short tempered, short sighted.
The other half of my mind strives to appreciate that there are people for whom lack of punctuality is tantamount to a lack of respect or interest or worth in the value of them and their regard for time. I don't want to be offensive or dismissive of the feelings or worth of another human being. Life would also be chaotic if there were no standards, benchmarks or parameters for appointments and functions.
We are an assortment, are we not: some people measure worth on a dress code, others by timeliness, others by credentials, still others by assumed standards of social acumen, others by dialect or vocabulary, others by experience. You must know (or be) a "Morning" person or an "evening" person. Each functions best at a given time of day and fades at the other half.
How can we honor chronological time without it overtaking our lives and our spirits? I don't know.
Do you have any ideas on this subject? Drop a comment to this post or a line to share at: deaconj@geraniumfarm.org. Thanks for the input.
posted by Joanna Depue | 12:06 AM
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