Guest Post by Maria Rizzuti
I have always been fascinated about the concept of time. What is the literal meaning of “time?” It is quite obvious that our lives are ruled by time. We may engage in some activities to pass the time. We try to educate our children in the proper use of time. Our fashion choices are a sign of the times. It seems that we experience vacation time differently than work time. The choices or decisions we make in our present time definitely have a huge impact on our future time. It is time to explore these important points.
Let’s begin with the definition of time. The Merriam-Webster’s Online Dictionary defines time as, “The measured or measurable period during which an action, process, or condition exists or continues.” Any which way you look at it, time can be demonstrated in diverse ways and can also be very subjective to ones own life and circumstances.
Time can be a predisposed issue. I find that our lives are ruled by time, specifically a moment, hour, day or year as indicated by a clock or calendar. “Oh my God what time is it? Am I late for work? What day is my doctor’s appointment?” Whether we like it or not we are governed by time. When we travel we have to worry about departure time. Our tour of duty may be from eight o’clock am to four o’clock pm every weekday. Dinner reservations are made for a certain time as is curtain time for the theatre. Things like job interviews and other appointments are scheduled for specific times. Cooking involves precise timing or your recipes will turn out undercooked or overcooked. I guess you get the point!
Okay for the time being, let’s forget about being so regimented with our time and let loose once in a while and just kill some time. Perhaps you want to occupy your time by doing nothing. So just because I am not doing something constructive with my time I am not contributing to society? After a hard day at the office maybe vegging out in front of the tube will do that for me. Speaking of television, “There’s television time to buy.” Even TV commercials are timed at fifteen, thirty and one minute intervals. A thirty second advertisement will either make us buy that brand of toilet paper or zit cream and the ad agency will have successfully sold us on buying their merchandise in such a short period of time. To buy air time during the Super Bowl game an ad agency will pay big bucks for that thirty second spot as millions of viewers will be watching the game.
We as parents are constantly telling our children to turn off the TV. Instead of watching the football game, it’s time to do homework. “If you don’t do your homework and get good grades you won’t get into a good university or college.” If instead the kids pick a fight with each other you may give them a time out. If your child is the diligent type, he or she won’t even turn on the television and go right to his or her room and start that essay that’s due next week. Our children have to sort out the rest of their lives and decide what profession to pursue unless they want to be a football player of course.
Remember back in the seventies when we wore platform shoes and palazzo pants to that house party while your friend’s parents were away for the night. What were we thinking? Were we behind the times, old fashioned and or dated when we made those fashion choices? John Travolta didn’t think so when he strutted down to the 2001 Odyssey sporting that polyester look! Recollect that garage band that played at that same house party? Did the band keep time and perform oh so rhythmically in unison…not! That garage band was certainly not the Bee Gees! Who cares, they were great times and remember youth is the best time of your life.
I am a firm believer that things happen to us at certain times in our lives for a reason. The making of a certain decision at a particular moment or occasion in one’s life will determine your future. Your life’s course of events would not have had the same outcome if you had made a dissimilar choice at that time. Basically, you are the sum total of your personal experiences. At different times in your life, the occurrences and life choices you have made make you the person you are today. The choices that you made twenty five years ago, two years ago and even five minutes ago can be judged and reviewed at the final outcome. Perhaps you felt that the particular decision that you made was the best one at the time with a particular set of circumstances. Perhaps reflect back to a specific example and see if time has answered the question. Time will tell if what we have done here today was right.
Time is a part of our daily lives. Time embodies our past, present and future. Time is indeed, a fascinating concept!
