Thursday, January 08, 2009 Antalan: A reflection on time By Roger P. Antalan Dateline Igacos
WE BECOME most aware of time every New Year. Time is what everybody has. The problem is that we cannot save time. Time is at once the most valuable and at the same time the most perishable of all our possessions. We must learn how to use it wisely. As someone points out: “Time flies, but remember, you are the navigator.”
Austin Dobson talks about the paradox of time: “Time goes, you say? Ah, no! Alas, Time stays, we go.” That’s the reason why Benjamin Franklin says: “Dost thou love life? Then do not squander time, for that’s the stuff life is made of.” Know the value of time: snatch, seize and enjoy every minute of it.
Although the Bible, in Eclesiastes 3:1. stated that “To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven,” Charles Burton commented that “you will never find time for anything. If you want time you must make it.” It is interesting to note that the less one has to do, the less time one finds to do it in. And so you hear the voice of experience confidently declare: “If you want something to be done, give it to a busy man.”
Somebody once thought it would be a wonderful thigh if every day of our lives each of us had Php 1440 in the bank that we had to spend before the end of the day __ none of it could be carried over to the following day. Each of us does have 1,440 minutes every day. Could they be spent in a better way?
Time management consultant Antonio Herrera asked the participants in a seminar, “If we had to buy time, would there be any difference in how we would spend it? Would the days of our lives be used more wisely?” He asked, “What if you had to pay in advance one hundred dollars an hour for the time allotted to you? Would you waste it?” The answer should be obvious.
When it comes right down to it, people who still religiously make New Year’s resolutions realize that the main lesson of the past is wasting time. Too many of us waste time on insignificant things that, ultimately, do not matter. How precious is time and how guilty we should feel if we trifle away and mis-improve or neglect to fill up each part of it with duty to the utmost of our ability and capacity.
At this juncture, I would like to sincerely thank all those who found time to send to me all those wonderful text messages wishing for me and my family all the best for 2009. In return, may I share this beautiful passage from an unknown author about taking time in very positive ways:
“Take time to work -- it is the price of success. Take time to think -- it is the source of power. Take time to play -- it is the secret of youth. Take time to read -- it is the foundation of knowledge. Take time to worship -- it is the highway to reverence. Take time to help and enjoy friends -- it is the source of happiness. Take time to love -- it is the one sacrament of life. Take time to dream -- it hitches the soul to the stars. Take time to laugh -- it is the music of the soul. Take time to pray -- it helps bring Christ near.”
The reflection on time clearly tells us how precious life is and how important it is to live every single day to the fullest while we still have an opportunity. Time flies even when we are not having fun. We do not have to remain in a dismal situation. Let us surround ourselves with positive people who have positive thoughts and we will be amazed at how quickly things will change.
Just remember this: what we love to do we will find time to do.
