Time

“You never step into the same river twice.” A saying that at first seems illogical, until someone explains that the water is always flowing, so it’s never the same from moment to moment. The same could be said about time. Once a moment has passed, we can’t get it back.

Time is a strange thing. Humans named components of time (seconds, minutes, years, etc.) perhaps as a way to control it. I think millions of dollars a year are spent on calendars, and now apps, in the hopes of managing time. The suggestions for management are many and varied. There are also principles about how tasks fill up “empty” time.

I recently (maybe because of age or unconscious overwhelm) decided that I can only attend a limited number of engagements per day. If I try to exceed that number, then I end up canceling. If I ever master teleportation, perhaps that limit will change. From a young age (many Gen Xers were latch-key kids; I wore mine around my neck on a shoestring) I’ve had to know about time. How long it takes to walk to school, what time I need to leave the house, how long it takes me to get ready, etc. As an adult, time management can make or break a day (or a class or a job…).

I’m good with placing my most important priorities first, then filling in the day with less important tasks. However, sometimes I mismanage my time. I’m late for the first thing of the day, and like dominoes, it effects the rest of my time blocks. I can’t go back and add time to the day (the river keeps flowing), so I learn to accept what is (because the alternative is too much added misery).

The frustrating part of this is that writing hits low on the priority list (behind Holly and working). The positive part is that I can jump into the story and scribble out a page or two while waiting in the doctor’s office or for a client to start a session. The good news is that I’m making progress on the anthology story. The frustrating part is that the progress is slow. But looking at the river (time), I’m always optimistic that those words will get written. How would you rate yourself on time management?