Some people live more in 20 years than others do in 80. It’s not the time that matters, it’s the person. ~ The 10th Doctor Who

The Variable Nature of Time

Over the last twenty-five years of working, I have on several occasions quit and traveled for a year, taken a new job for several years and then quit and done it all over again. During one of those breaks I hiked a thousand miles on the Appalachian Trail. I’ve also attended the Burning Man festival in Nevada seven or eight times now. One of the things that all of those have in common is their impact on time.

Time, or at least the perception of time, is not a constant thing. We all know this, you can get lost in an activity and time goes by in a blink of an eye. We all have also been in meetings, long, grinding, boring meetings that although they only lasted an hour on the clock, felt like they lasted forever, time is elastic.

When I’ve been out of the workforce, traveling, spending a week off the grid at Burning Man and especially while hiking on the Appalachian Trail, individual days were very long, time went by at a very slow pace and it was glorious. When time slows down it’s easier, to steal a cliche, to stop and smell the roses. Quite literally, but also figuratively. Slow time means it’s easier to focus on the moment, to be more mindful of your surroundings, your thoughts and of the joy and happiness of that particular moment in your life.

I was reminded of the fluidity of time the last two weeks. I spent three months recovering from open heart surgery, this was another time in my life when time slowed down. It made the recovery more intense, but it was also important to focus on the moments and each minute and aspect of my recovery. Those three months moved gloriously slowly, one of the biggest benefits of that was giving me a significant break from the stress of my job. Stress eats you alive and it was certainly chewing me up, the break was needed. Now I’d prefer not to have to have to be cracked open like a lobster to get that kind of break, but a mental break it was none the less. The last two weeks at work have gone by in what seemed like an hour. It’s terrible to feel life screaming by at that pace, to have weekends, my only truly free time disappear in a wink of an eye.

So the point of this post tonight my friends. Find your way to a path in life where you can walk a little slower, where time can slow down and you can find a way to be more present, more mindful and focused on the moment. That’s exactly what I’m engaged in doing right now. Do this, and I promise you happier days my friends. ~ Rev Kane