We live in a world that is governed by time. A large portion of the stress we experience is due to the fact that there’s never enough time in the day – but is that even true?
Time is a weird thing. We tend to equate time with the segments of a clock, numbers ticking away every day. We regulate our lives by knowing that we spend 8 hours at work, 2 hours before work, so many hours after… So many days to finish a project, pay a bill … Travel so many hours to see friends or family … Having to catch a plane in so many minutes … Needing this many hours of sleep … Having to get the kids to school in this time.
Always, there’s a limited quantity of time. We squeeze ourselves into that slot of restricted possibilities. We make plans every day so that we can feel safe, and feel in control. We know what to expect, how to function in this world. We agree with the rules and regulations of the clock. We don’t really feel the need to question them. After all, everyone does it!
Time is weird
Once you slow down, time begins to stretch. Remember Einstein’s relativity, stating that time moves with the speed that is dependent on the speed of the observer? What does that really mean? Have you noticed that when you have lots to do and run all day, time moves fast? That when you sit in a chair waiting, it slows down to a crawl. Isn’t there something here that could teach us to use our days more effectively? To be less stressed by the confines of ‘not enough time’?
Time doesn’t behave like a clock. A clock moves at exactly the same speed every second. We just use a clock to measure ourselves, to measure our progress, make sure we know when we have to do what and be where. The clock isn’t equal to time. The clock is a measure of itself, and we use it to divide our days into portions.
Take Your Time
Take some time for yourself. When you do that you’ll find that time expands. You are given more. When you take time for yourself, you’ll find that you have more time for your family as well. You’ll have more time for your clients, your animals, your friends. More time to do your work well.
It takes a little courage to lift your head above the water and take a deep breath, when everyone around you is being swept along in the river at great speed, struggling to stay afloat and to survive. But you’ll find that when you stop struggling and lift your head, that the water is actually not that scary, it slows in your perception, and you can breathe and enjoy the warm summer air. You’ll see that everyone else is still fighting around you, but YOU can stop. You might even want to grab one of them and help them relax and drop the fear. That’s what I like to do.
Take a little time for yourself. Take time to sit and watch the inexplicable slowness of time. The slower it gets, the more you’ll enjoy it. The bright autumn leaves under the grey sky. The cat stalking a bird, so patiently. The dripping of rain on the porch. The steady waves of breath, the beating of your heart.
Take your time.
How?
A way to allow yourself to simply sit is to use time as an object of your meditation. In that way, doing nothing becomes doing something in your mind and it is easier to convince yourself of its value. The slow ticking of a wall clock is an excellent focusing help.
If you want to know more about meditation try out one of these. Question your thinking about time using the 4 questions of The Work, or talk to me about creating more time for yourself.
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Image by Aron Visuals on Unsplash
