Skip to main content

What Are We Giving Time To?


It’s the beginning of a new week, and soon, a new month. Where did the time go? Weren’t we all swimming and grilling and taking vacations just a couple of weeks ago?

Now the kids are all well into the school year. In a few days, it will be Halloween. And incredibly, it’s only 58 days until Christmas.

Someone has said, “Life is not just the passing of time. Life is the collection of experiences and their intensity.”

Well put. Not just a collection of experiences but also their intensity. Those are the moments that give life substance, affirmation, depth. Those are the times we remember.

I attended a couple of birthday parties over the weekend. They were great times with family and friends I love. We shared food and drinks, laughter and fun, warm hugs and memories. There were children rolling in the grass, their tender faces bright with smiles, their small arms extended to receive squeezes and kisses.

There were adult reminiscences, catching up on what’s new with one another, and the easy flow of conversation and friendship.

Those are not just happy times, they are times filled with earnestness and devotion, luminous moments that remind us of the meaning of our journey here. Which is all about human connections, sharing, and love.

The Indian mystic and poet Rabindranath Tagore wrote that we should not give time to querulous people who will take time from us so that in the end we leave "Time’s altar empty of all offerings that last.”

These are days filled with this sort of time stealing. American society is locked in a battle against the abuse of time, a battle where time is wasted in petulant acrimony, endless arguing, and the failed attempts to express ourselves in ways that actually inspire and move others into more thoughtful thinking and acting.

The Buddhists tell the story of a young boy who asks an old man how old he is. The man says he is four years old. The boy is shocked and looking at him he says, “But your hair is so white, and you carry a cane. How can you be only four?” The old man smiled and said, “In the past, I lived a wasteful life. I was selfish and preoccupied. I was bitter and unhappy. Four years ago, I gained new insights into myself and into life. I learned to do good and be helpful. I decided to rid myself of greed, hatred, and ignorance. I knew I possessed a better nature and I wanted to live by it. Four years ago, I discovered value, meaning, and fulfillment by choosing to do better. That is why I am only four years old.”

We never get too old to discover how precious our existence can be. We never get too old to decide to fill it with a collection of experiences and intensity that give time such quality and purpose that our life journey will leave footprints and laughter and affection in the dreams of all we love.

© 2019 Timothy Moody

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

We are Made for Human Connection

There are words from Brandi Carlile’s song, “The Story,” that I might sing, and perhaps you, too. “All of these lines across my face Tell you the story of who I am So many stories of where I've been And how I got to where I am But these stories don't mean anything When you've got no one to tell them to” You don’t have to be single or alone to feel the depth of those words. Someone in a longtime marriage or relationship might feel them, too. The voyage through life takes each one of us through an assortment of experiences. Some of them ennoble us. Some crush us. Some lift us beyond ourselves and carry us into the lives of those who need us. And some carry us to those we need. Some experiences are burdens. Others ease and encourage us. Some leave us baffled and unsure. Some build confidence within us and are so affirming that we grow in substance, in courage, in tenderness, and sympathy. As we age, the lines in our faces can represent the hurts we have not yet resolved. Or t
Post a Comment
Read more

If I had five minutes to evacuate--what would I take with me?

If I was told there was a bomb in my building and I had five minutes to evacuate my apartment I’d grab a grocery bag and quickly toss these items into it: 1. A photo of my grandparents, Mom and Pop and me, when I was 15 years old. I learned what love is made of from them. I learned what it is to be kissed on and hugged in arms so tender they felt like God’s arms. I discovered self worth from those two angels in human flesh. Of all the people in my life, they were the ones who made me feel I counted. Honestly, whatever capacity I have to love others came from them. 2. A sentimental, dog-eared, stars in the margin copy of Pat Conroy’s, “The Prince of Tides.” It is a book I have read three times and often return to for its wisdom. It is a harsh, profoundly tragic novel, the story of a family so broken and tortured by such flawed and wounded people that it is sometimes difficult to turn the next page. And yet it is the story of such Herculean courage and endurance that you want
9 comments
Read more

Do we need a new country?

Have you seen the elaborate, stylish, opulent television commercial for Cartier? The original commercial seemed to go on forever, a full three minutes. They have shortened it now, but it still drips with ostentatiousness. It is conspicuously pretentious in spite of the beautiful music and the sleek panther and the stunning scenery and the elegant model dressed in a striking red gown. The commercial takes the viewer through an amazing montage of dreamy landscapes and famous cities and spectacular stunts while moving past a giant expensive watch and finally to a glittering diamond bracelet modeled by the woman in red. Each time I see it I keep wondering who the target audience is. It seems to be such an over the top expression of unbridled greed and materialism gone ape. In a time when much of the world is starving and millions are still out of work here at home it seems bizarre that Cartier would spend what has to be millions on a television commercial celebrating 165 years in
6 comments
Read more