How do you measure time?

There are many ways to measure time? Maybe you have a techy calendar on your phone or a paper one on your refrigerator. These will certainly help you keep track of birthdays, vacation days, and upcoming appointments. But what about remembering the seasons of your life? Remembering when you experienced the highs and lows?

People experience different levels and stages in their lives. Maybe you're at the place where you measure your life by everything that happened before and after retirement. Before you had a family to raise or when you started re-experiencing life with an empty nest.

Our parents and grandparents may refer to how life was before or after a war. 

A patient may define their journey as before or after their medical diagnosis. 

A young adult may label their accomplishments as before or after their college graduation.

Whatever category you find yourself in it's interesting to understand the perspective you bring to the table. What situations or life events altered your journey?

Almost anyone these days could measure family gatherings or vacations as before Covid complicated life or now when people have resumed many of their activities.

How do you measure your life; what you've accomplished or what your current goals are? 

What stage do you find yourself in?

86,400 Seconds

Time is a funny thing; it can speed by at times, while other times it seems to drag by. Often we look at a hectic week and wonder where we will find enough time to get everything done. Other times we are waiting in anticipation for a vacation or a special event and it seems like the day will never come.

If you break it down and do the math you'll find that there are exactly 86,400 seconds in a single day. That sounds like a HUGE number, certainly more than enough time to do something positive and productive; certainly enough time to make a concentrated effort and make a difference.

Take an honest moment and reflect back on what you've done in the last 86,400 seconds. Or better yet, what didn't you do that you would have liked to have done?

Like many other people, my last two weeks have been a whirlwind. I've been to two funerals, I've worked a full time job, I've cooked (at least once or twice, lol), I've grocery shopped, I've cleaned, I've run errands, I've been a wife and a mother, and I've found myself being a lot of things for a lot of other people. Today I finally made some time for me (well, after I went to the bank and the Secretary of State office). I ran some 'me' errands then invited my sweet husband to play hookie with me for a few hours. We went to Little Caesars for a dine-in $5.00 pizza, talked about serious and non-serious stuff, watched a musical YouTube video on my phone, and just sat at the corner table for over an hour. Then we perused the garden patio pot display at a local store, made a trip through Best Buy for a phone charger, and ended up scouring through the CD bin (talked about a nostalgic walk down memory lane ... we finally settled on seven CDs). We wrapped up our afternoon splurge with a quick run into Sam's Club where he bought me flowers. The nicest part of the my afternoon? The company, of course ... but we never looked at our watches, we just enjoyed the time we spent together.

While I may not recall everything I accomplished in my last 86,400 seconds, I know what I did for the last 10,800 seconds. I made each and every one of them count. I made an effort to notice them.

We all have days and weeks where we have a hard time keeping up with the demands, let alone finding time for any quality sleep. When you can, be sure to make time to take care of yourself. I'm the first to admit that I have a difficult time practicing what I write about sometimes, but I am a work in progress. I plan to keep practicing until I get it right.

So what have you done with your last 86,400 seconds? 

What will do with the next 86,400?

Where does the time go?

Where does the time go? How many times a day do you ask yourself that simple question? How many times have you not been able to discover the answer, lol? 

As adults, many of us will reflect back and recall how simpler times were when we were younger. There weren't as many distractions, not as many responsibilities. Although, the responsibility part just comes with age. Our kids will probably say the same thing in 20 or 30 years. 

When I was a kid most families were a one-income family; meaning mom was usually there to fix you lunch on a summer day. We would go outside to ride our bikes and play as soon as the breakfast dishes were done. We would come home at lunchtime or call home (from a landline) to see if we could stay over at a friend's house. We played OUTSIDE all day; if it rained we played games under the covered front porch or in a fort in someone's backyard. Sadly, I hardly ever see kids outside riding their bikes anymore. Somewhere along the line kids found it more interesting to stay in and play video games and watch Netflix (please note I have nothing against Netflix, but everything should be in moderation). And sadly, many parents seem fine with that. But I can also admit that things are different today than when I was a kid. A lot of families have two incomes (although, some are lucky to work from home) which means that time needs to be divided differently.

Time is a funny thing. It can creep by at a snail's pace or it can go by in the blink of an eye.

I often find myself wondering ...

• When did my kids grow up to be adults? I can look at their baby pictures and feel like it was only yesterday.
• Has my family really lived in our house for nearly 20 years? That's the longest I've EVER been in one place.
• Have I really been at my same job for 17 years? It sure doesn't seem like it.
• When did the grey hairs start being the norm? (that's an obvious one, lol ... after my kids made it through their teenage years and college)

Some days I find myself wishing things could slow down a bit (okay, a lot). It seems like we grow up thinking things will be better when we're older, then the responsibilities smack us in the face and we work ... all the time. We're always planning for our future, so much so, that it's easy to forget to stop and smell the roses (or you fill in the metaphor). There comes a point you have to say, 'What the heck.' Take that vacation. Read that book you've been putting off. Work on that hobby you never have enough time for, but is supposed to help you relax and sleep better. Write that book or run that race. None of us have guarantees on how much time we have left on this earth to do anything, so we need to start making the time.

Take a 5 minute break, grab a cool drink, find someplace quiet where you can actually hear yourself think, put your phone away, and decide what you don't want to miss out on. Then, make it happen!

What have you not had time to do, but really want to?

Make The Time

How often does something happen and you wish you had more time? You or someone you care about gets sick. Your kids have grown up in what seems like the blink of an eye. There's a hurricane or a tornado. Time moves by so fast and yet we find ourselves wishing that we not only had more time, but that we had better used our time.

It is my nature to be a planner. I'm ALWAYS planning ahead; trying to be responsible and be prepared. I was a Girl Scout for many years when I was growing up, perhaps that is when the characteristic rooted. From an early age I became dependent on myself. If I wanted something done, I needed to make it happen. I learned not to depend on other people, but rather be in charge of my own destiny. Somewhere along the line though I became TOO good at being a planner. I can admit I often forget to make time for myself or the people I care most about. I tend to get caught up more in what will be happening next week and next month, so much so that I often forget to enjoy today. 

I need to learn that while it is important (and responsible) to be an organizer and an efficient planner, it is also important to learn to create a better life balance. I need to smell the roses more. I need to hold hands with my husband when we're taking a walk. I need to laugh more at witty puns and jokes until my sides ache. I need to embrace today more. If I manage to do that then I believe I will have the stronger stamina I need to tackle the responsibilities and obstacles that life will undoubtedly throw at me.

But how do I make that happen? I suppose being aware and acknowledging the problem is the first step. The next step? Great question. If you have the answer, I am all ears. I could remind myself over and over again to not worry as much about tomorrow and next week, but embrace the here and now. And if I can't remember I can only hope that my family and friends will be there to remind me, stick post it notes on my windshield, write me messages in the steam on my bathroom mirror, send me texts and emails ... whatever it takes for the proverbial 2x4 to hit me square between the eyes.

How balanced is your life? Can you relate or am I experiencing this dilemma all by myself? What helps you to keep an open perspective and to live more in the moment?

It's Time For A Break

Time can be pretty complex. It's more than just a four letter word. Wikipedia defines time as the indefinite continued progress of existence and events that occur in apparently irreversible succession from the past through the present to the future. That may sound pretty specific and scientific, but it's more than just a combination of seconds, minutes, and hours. Time is something that can linger for days and also something that once it slips by we cannot get back.

Time has been referred to in so many ways :

• Time heals all wounds.
• Take life one day at a time.
• We all wish we had more time.
• Time is precious.
• Time is of the essence.
• Don't waste your time.
• Time flies by.
• Memories can be frozen in time.

For me, lately, time seems to be going by faster than the blink of an eye. Seems like only yesterday my children were little; were seeing and experiencing things for the first time ... and now they're grown up. My youngest just graduated from college and my oldest came home to support his sister and brought his family (a wonderful wife and my two wonderful granddaughters). When did they grow up? When did my life move ahead on fast forward?

There's no way to slow it down or stop the inevitable. There's no way to make it last any longer. So what can we do? We can try to get off the fast track of life; the track that has us always looking at what is to come and what we need to finish and what we need to prepare for. Instead we need to appreciate the 'now', the part that creates the memories for later.

As a parent I've spent much of my energy focusing on supporting my children, their talents, and their goals, helping them get where they wanted to be. Now it's my turn, lol, to stand back and watch; to see who they've become and what they've accomplished. Yes, I am a proud mother. I try to tell my kids as often as I can and hope that they know how much I mean it. I am a proud grandmother. This past weekend I got to rock my youngest granddaughter and watch her look up at my face and listen to my voice. Then I would sit and watch the toddler play and giggle and talk and say 'bless you' when someone sneezed (including herself). For a moment I allowed myself to not look too far forward, but rather just enjoy the moment for what it was; both beautiful and amazing.

I am human. I will still have my moments of planning too far ahead and trying to squeeze 28 hours into a 24 hour day, but that's okay as long as I can find a balance. A balance of being in control when I can, being a responsible multi-tasker when I need to be, and being a happy grandma who can forget about literally everything else when one of my granddaughters is in the room ... at that point nothing else could possibly be a priority.

What Is Your Time Worth?

Time is a commodity. We need more time to get more done so we can take the time we need for other things. It's a vicious cycle. But how do you feel when someone takes your time for granted? Do you feel used? Manipulated? Let down? If you feel any of these things you're perfectly normal.

 

Too often people will plan something with you, which means you've marked time 'open just for them' in your busy life. Your time is worth just as much as theirs. Then they cancel at the last minute or forget altogether as if it meant nothing. Apparently they don't understand that YOU could have been doing something else with your time, but you chose to make them a priority. In their little bubble of the world it was only about them; their needs, their wants, and their time. Anything that concerned you went right out the window.

 

When this happens (often repeatedly), do we learn our lesson? Do we share our disappointment with them? Do we think twice the next time they want to plan something with us? Sometimes 'yes', sometimes 'no'. We don't want or intend to be the doormat, but apparently we appreciate things like friendship and mutual respect more than they do.

 

This post isn't meant to be a downer; I'm just sharing some observations. I've always been a people watcher and one to try and understand why people do the things they do. No one wants to feel they're important only until a better offer comes along and they get pushed aside. Sure, there will always be unexpected delays in life due to traffic, a storm blows in, or a doctor gets delayed because of an emergency. We can all be understanding of situations like these. But I'm talking about the times when people make choices; sometimes selfish ones. It would be nice if these people stopped long enough to consider how their choices will affect other people. Sometimes deep inside (truth be told) we hope for karma, so they'll experience a little dose of their own actions and feel the disappointment. Some would learn from it and unfortunately some never will because they can't see past their own nose.

 

So what's the solution? Hard to say. I suppose we just need to pull our adult pants up and grow thicker skin. I know, easier said than done. The important thing to remember is that while we'll never be able to control the actions of others, we can always strive to make our own strong, independent choices that best suit our lives and our needs. The next time someone bales on lunch or a planned get together for no good reason and you feel inconvenienced ... tell them and then seriously think twice about accepting the next time. Make them wait for you. Hope that they'll learn and appreciate that your time has value too.