I got an email recently from my university alma mater congratulating me on having graduated 50 years ago that day. I was aware of this upcoming 50-year marker since I had gone to my high school class 50th reunion four years previously, but the email reminded me overpoweringly of the passage of time.
“Like sand through an hourglass, so goes the days of our lives.” That phrase from the popular soap opera has many meanings to me these days. Where does time go? How can I be the age I am today? I don’t feel like a senior citizen, older adult, or whatever people of my ilk are called.
I remember growing up when time seemed to stand still while waiting for something special to happen. It seemed like Christmas would NEVER come. The promise of school being out and having a summer vacation time was eagerly awaited. Summer was a welcomed eternity. I liked going to school but liked more the freedom of summers on the farm and having the playtime to do what I wanted.
Now I feel like time is speeding. Perhaps it is because they say time flies when you are having fun, and I am, but I would just like it all to slow down a bit. I feel like I never have enough time each day to do everything I want to do.
I have been a scholar of leisure throughout my professional career. We all yearn for a balance of life that includes enough time for all genres of meaningful activities including work and leisure. Leisure and what it affords cannot be taken for granted.
One of the ways that leisure is quantified is as “free time.” I find that idea rather curious since nothing is completely free. Constraints are omnipresent. As I have argued elsewhere, with freedom comes responsibility. Each day I think about my mostly free time–what I want to do, how I want to do it, and try to assure it does minimal harm to me or others in my use of time.
All of us have the same amount of time each day. Because of responsibilities, however, we do not have uniform free time opportunities. Decisions about the use of time vary. Some folks have obligations that require serious amounts of time such as caregiving. Others have greater choice in organizing their lives as I gratefully feel now in my encore performance (aka retirement).
Nevertheless, we do not have the same amount of time on this earth. Running out of time on a daily basis does not seem nearly as consequential as running out of time on this earth. I think about how I can make the most of my remaining days. I miss my family and friends who were limited in their earthly time. Although I would like to slow time down, I also want to enjoy each minute and be grateful for all the sands through my hourglass.
Karla, it seems that a sense that time is speeding up is almost universal as we age. I think it’s a perceptual trick. For example, when I was two years old, one year represented 50% of my time on earth, and time seemed to crawl by. But now at the age of 74, one year represents only about 1.4% of my time on earth. And now each year feels like it is whizzing by when as a child, as you said, time seemed to almost stand still. You are spot on when you say make the most of the here and now, and you and your “gang” appear to be doing just that. Each day is a blessing. We never know how much time we have left. Enjoy!
I was trying to find that analogy about the “ratio” between age and time and I think it was maybe you who had shared that idea with me several years ago. It makes a lot of sense in terms of the perspective. Thanks for sharing the idea again.
Totally agree- time just seems to speed by every day! I know my mom has commented for years now on how fast time goes by (she IS almost 91)— only recently have I been able to sympathize and empathize with that sentiment. Maybe it is realizing the end of time on the planet for me is closer than farther away, or maybe it just takes me longer to do what I used to be able to do much quicker. I’m not sure. But it is real. So yes, the sand slips through the hourglass too fast most days for me. I just hope that how I spend my time as represented by that sand is worthy, because I only get this day once….
Loved this article Karla. A great reminder to stop, breathe, and savor.