April 25, 2012

Time

I've been thinking a lot about the concept of time. The significance of time varies so much from situation to situation and we're left either wanting less or wanting more. In sport, less time is almost always better. We set out to run faster, bike further, finish with a PR. We go to great lengths to shave precious seconds, or minutes, off our finish times.

But in life, more time is almost always what we yearn for. There is a Dutch bike shop in my neighborhood with a quote on the window, "If you love life, why are you rushing through it?" I pause each time I pass and ponder what this means. We're all busy. I spend every day juggling tasks and rarely truly focus on any. Time speeds by and I'm often saddened when I realize how quickly it has gone.

Today, however, time slowed down. We're in the midst of a tragic family medical crisis and a span of two hours felt like two days. It was a rare moment where we may have wished for time to pass quickly, only it slowed instead. Then I realized in life, with the people we love and cherish, we will always wish for more time. If we lived forever, it would never be enough.

So I leave you with this. Life is short, and that's not just a saying. We really don't know how much time we have and I believe it's a gift. As a huge Lord of the Rings fan, one of my favorite quotes is: "All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us." Live life well, and if you love someone, tell them. And next time you want to do something faster, think about how rewarding it might be to just take your time and enjoy every last moment.

4 comments:

  1. Yes yes yes yes yes yes yes. Love you, girlfriend. Love your family... and my heart breaks for Mark and his. And you too. xo xo

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  2. beautiful. thank you for the reminder.

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  3. Beautiful post...and the quotes were very apropos.

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  4. I always say this when people ask how I got through my trio of tragedies. The world stops and stands still - but you look around and everyone else is still going. I always looked at other people and thought "How can you be laughing - don't you know what I am going through?" You do all of these things because it MIGHT be the last time you are together as a family before someone who is terminal dies. The fact is - even "terminal" has no definite endpoint and you get to doing your life things again. You can't determine when anyone's time comes and really - when it comes -- you still didn't have enough time. It sucks. Plain and simple. You are right to pause at that window and ponder. Sorry you are hurting.

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