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Message 1: Call your truce with snooze

TIME is of the essence. This is a key concept in contract law and also in life.  Yes, you can get extensions and exemptions but the truth is the time given up is lost, gone and is not coming back. Remember the proverb ‘time and tide wait for no man’? This is true to every letter. Time is very clear on its roles and obligations. Everyone gets twenty-four hours a day, no exceptions. It understands the seasons so when it gives you an hour more to snuggle in during wintery nights, it also sets your day an hour earlier to harvest the spring sunshine. The contract you have with time is sacred and just as it is true to its commitment, you have to be too.  I struggled with snoozing and took pride with the number of times I snoozed before I woke up in the morning. Then, a wise friend shared with me that my repeated action of delaying the start of my day was inadvertently signalling a postponement for the start of other things. This pinched me so hard that I set the alarm with more care these days to maintain my truce with snooze. See more about this truce in the post ‘Truce with Snooze’.

Message 2: Take action, do not sit around

Your time will come. This is one of the timeless sayings that applies in the ‘get well soon’ category of situations like finding a partner, securing a job, having a baby. Similar to those instances, the best response is to say, thank you and if you can manage it, squeeze in a smile. This phrase does not invite a response. What are you going to say… ‘when is my time?’, ‘how do you know?’  No, you can’t and even if you do utter it, nobody knows. Effectively, what is being conveyed to you is ‘chillax honey, today is not your day. Try again, do things differently.’ Just because you hear ‘your time will come’ repeatedly, do not wait around because when you look up, time has passed and it may still ‘not be your time’. Take action, go through the motions, fall, pick yourself up and start again. It is a long flight ahead and there is much to see and do.

Message 3: Respect time. Manage it well for a balanced life

Days slip away and we look up unable to pin point our achievements along the way. I am not suggesting that you trek mountains weekly or live your life on a to do checklist 24×7 that you are constantly running from one task to another. The suggestion is to respect the time you have, making the most of it that you complete each day, feeling full, not empty. I love my Garfield days, lounging around, binging movies and series. But I revere the time that I take to do it and enjoy the activity whole heartedly. Make an inventory of how you spend time, do this a few times and you will notice patterns. Reflect on what could be done better and make suitable adjustments. If the concept of time management still feels alien, think of food portions; carbs, fruit and vegetables, protein, good fat and portion up your time accordingly, making space for yourself, activities and loved ones.

Message 4: Time does not heal wounds, forgiveness does

Time heals all wounds. This is another saying you just nod to. Time is not an anaesthetic drug that it numbs the pain. The passage of time allows us to infuse new experiences, feelings and the intention is, given sufficient duration, past hurt could be replaced with newer memories. However, you would notice that if you dig up past hurt years later, it can still be recollected vividly with intensity of the present moment. Healing happens with acceptance and forgiveness. Digesting this is a bitter pill but it does wonders for your soul and well-being. This is a tough one to juggle my dear but the key is not to rush the process. Take time to grieve. Do not repress the feelings as it could erupt like an unexpected volcano. Try to communicate with a close friend, counsellor or to yourself in front of a mirror. Art, journaling, gardening and upskilling with courses are other helpful avenues to channel and release any tension.  

Message 5: There is no ‘Perfect Time’. It is either now or never

Now is about the most beautiful present you will receive. It is perfect as it is and as John Legend sang, love it with all its perfect imperfections. If you want to do something, do it with the resources you have at the present time. Waiting for the perfect time is ‘waiting’. Grow with the knowledge gathered and that in itself is perfect timing.

Sharing some favourite quotes to pilot your life:

“The bad news is time flies. The good news is you’re the pilot” ~ Michael Altshuler

“It is not enough to be busy..the question is what are we busy about.” ~ Henry David Thoreau

“Time = life; therefore, waste your time and waste of your life, or master your time and master your life.” ~ Alan Lakein

“You don’t have to be great to start, but you have to start to be great.” ~ Zig Ziglar

“Do not wait; the time will never be ‘just right.’ Start where you stand, and work with whatever tools you may have at your command, and better tools will be found as you go along.” ~ George Herbert

Love and hugs,

Moi