Blog 833 – 12.04.2017

What Time is It? – Now!!!

Since I was a boy, and as there is still a little boy that lives inside of me, that might not have been as long ago as my face might seem to indicate…Time is, according to Albert Eisenstein, relative. I have noticed some of my relatives showing a little wear and tear around the edges but figure they are worrying or working too hard or not getting enough rest. Jokes aside, “What time is it? Is a question we hear often. I started out before I got lost in a humor detour to tell you that from a boy I have worn a watch. Each time I lost or broke my watch and had to go without till it was replaced I almost stared a hole in my wrist checking the time. That is very much the way people continually are checking their smart phones today and marking the passing of time.

One of the most asked questions of children traveling is, “Are we there yet?” It seems we are all obsessed with the passing of time. The only correct answer to the question, “What Time Is It?” is “Now.” By the time one recounts our arbitrary marking of time to the second that second has passed. It is always, Now. Why then do we spend so much time in our minds in another place and time – in yesterday or in the future, both very dangerous neighborhoods. Why? You asked – thanks for urging me on with this. The past is dangerous because as we age we have a tendency to exaggerate the goodness of the past to the exclusion of discovering the goodness of the now. Young people are tempted as well by the lure of a brighter more fun future – “If only I was sixteen, eighteen, or twenty-one.” Instead of wishing for some golden era that probably never really was or some bright future that may or may not come to pass we should focus on the nasty and equally lovely now and now.

Ask me what time it is and I will show you my watch and encourage you to make the most of the time of your life – Now.

Your friend and fellow traveler,

David White