In the book of Ecclesiastes we hear that for every thing there is a season and a time for every matter under heaven. A time to live and a time to die... I have always liked this reading. For it shows the complexities of life. You do have time to dance and a time to refrain from dancing. There are appropriate times for joy and other times when we should be sad. Life is full of ups and downs. Everything goes in cycles. Such is life.
Every day is made up of 86,400 seconds. Now we spend a 1/3 of that sleeping. So we are awake 57,600 seconds each day. I think we are called to make the most of those 57,600 seconds each day. That means we do need ample time for play, for work, for merry making, for sombre thought, etc.
In our minds, some weeks seem to rush by and other weeks seem to go by much more slowly. The week before a big project is due rushes by. The week before a long awaited reunion with a family member seems to drag by. Time doesn't change. But our relationship to it does change depending on our context.
This week's context for me has been that I am off from work. It was nice to take a bit of holiday off at this time of year when things are a bit quieter. And I had a few things I have wanted to do. I wanted to read the book for next week's book club meeting. I wanted to see a few movies. I wanted to catch up on laundry etc. I did not have a lot o plans, but I did have some things that I wanted to get done.
I am happy to report that I have made some progress on all of these things. The laundry is now half done and will be done tomorrow. I have made a good dent in the book I have seen a movie or two. But I have not done as much as I would like to because there have been some interruptions. A chance to meet with friends was nice. An unexpected bank charge on my account was not so nice. An invite to a wine tasting was quite fine.
It was then that I realise that I need to hear the words of Ecclesiastes again. For everything there is a season. And that includes living according to events that are planned and dealing with the unexpected interruptions. Life is a journey. The interruptions are a detour. But in the end, we all get to the same destination.
Every day is made up of 86,400 seconds. Now we spend a 1/3 of that sleeping. So we are awake 57,600 seconds each day. I think we are called to make the most of those 57,600 seconds each day. That means we do need ample time for play, for work, for merry making, for sombre thought, etc.
In our minds, some weeks seem to rush by and other weeks seem to go by much more slowly. The week before a big project is due rushes by. The week before a long awaited reunion with a family member seems to drag by. Time doesn't change. But our relationship to it does change depending on our context.
This week's context for me has been that I am off from work. It was nice to take a bit of holiday off at this time of year when things are a bit quieter. And I had a few things I have wanted to do. I wanted to read the book for next week's book club meeting. I wanted to see a few movies. I wanted to catch up on laundry etc. I did not have a lot o plans, but I did have some things that I wanted to get done.
I am happy to report that I have made some progress on all of these things. The laundry is now half done and will be done tomorrow. I have made a good dent in the book I have seen a movie or two. But I have not done as much as I would like to because there have been some interruptions. A chance to meet with friends was nice. An unexpected bank charge on my account was not so nice. An invite to a wine tasting was quite fine.
It was then that I realise that I need to hear the words of Ecclesiastes again. For everything there is a season. And that includes living according to events that are planned and dealing with the unexpected interruptions. Life is a journey. The interruptions are a detour. But in the end, we all get to the same destination.
