Time
"the secret of life is enjoying the passage of time" ~ James Taylor
the concept of time is a mystery. no matter how hard i try i can't wrap my head around it. how it happens, why, when - you name it, i'm trying to figure it out. time goes by slowly in the moment but quickly when the moment's over. a day spent languishing is never long enough. it seems like i have hours to go, then all of a sudden it's over. i don't get that never-ending day feeling unless i'm working, then it's "will this day ever end?"
"we may never pass this way again" ~ Seals & Crofts
i often think about stopping time. if i had that ability, in which moments would i choose to linger? at a concert recently, Tommy Shaw, the feeling and artistry of the singer and the songs, left me wanting to feel it for hours longer. that empty feeling when the moment has passed and you're left waiting for more. i started to think, where would i stop time if i could, what moments would i preserve. the trouble with that thinking is that times often seem commonplace when you're in them. they don't seem as special until life has changed and gone past the simpler times. i know now which ones i would've liked to savour but didn't know at the time.
"old days, good times i remember" ~ Chicago
when our schedules get crowded it seems there's never enough time. again, the concept eludes me. yes, i know, the cycle of life - birth, life, death - but what does that mean. you live a big part of life without the loved ones you treasured. you know that if you could stop time, you would choose moments wisely and those with lost loved ones are first on the list. but would you know to stop it? when they are old or sick it's logical to think that way. but time spent with those same folks when they're young and healthy or those who are taken too early, time spent with them may be one of those commonplace feelings that don't merit a second thought, that don't make the list of where to stop.
"if i could turn back time" ~ Cher
so i'm left with the same dilemma - where would i pull the plug on moving on quickly to the next moment. which moments deserve that privilege. savour times past or preserve the present because i'm painfully aware of where it all ends. back to the concert. somehow i know that it made the list. that the feeling i had during those moments was one i needed to last longer. back to the concept of time and the mystery it holds.
