It’s springtime in Texas. The wildflowers are dotting the highways. The pecan trees and sycamores are sprouting leaves again. The reptiles are awake, and the colorful birds are back. The changing of the seasons offers reassurance that time does— in fact— march on and all things seem to come around again.
There is comfort in knowing that the days will be warmer and longer. Just as there is comfort in knowing autumn’s chill will be back before we know it. It’s like the old Harry Chapin song says:
“All my life’s a circle;
Sunrise and sundown;
Moon rolls thru the nighttime;
Till the daybreak comes around.
All my life’s a circle;
But I can’t tell you why;
Season’s spinning round again;
The years keep rollin’ by.”
I realize I quote song lyrics often in these columns. I’ve probably quoted this one before. I’ll probably quote it again at some point— all part of the circle, I guess.
Springtime also bustles with activity. Graduation is around the corner and the weeks leading up to it will be packed with parties, receptions, finals and planning. The spring sports seasons are in full swing. Elections are underway. People are going and coming and buzzing. It takes a collection of calendars to keep up with it all.
I told someone just the other day, “Let me get through May. Things will slow down then. I’ll have time to look at this project then.”
They won’t. I won’t.
I said the same thing in December, and somehow, it’s already almost May. It was Chaucer who once said, “Time waits for no man.” This quote seems to resonate with me more today than ever before. It harkens to the old proverb, “Time and tide wait for no man.”
The word tide refers to the natural phenomenon of the rising and falling of the ocean, which, like time, cannot be controlled by any human.
Willie Nelson was right; it is funny how time slips away.
(Nod to another song lyric:
“Well, hello there
My, it’s been a long, long time
How am I doing?
Oh, I guess that I’m doing fine
It’s been so long now
And it seems now that it was only yesterday
Gee, ain’t it funny how time slips away?”)
But does time really slip away? Does it wait for man? Or does it fly when you are having fun?
Y
ou could argue that once you hit a certain age time flies whether you are having fun or not. It’s all a matter of perspective because time doesn’t drag or fly or any of the other aforementioned adjectives. It simply marches forward in an unwavering, unending tempo.
There are 1,440 minutes in a day. They all last 60 seconds. It’s how we choose to use them that varies. Make the seconds count. Steady the tempo and enjoy the ride.
Source: Freepik.com