"In the diary you find proof that in
situations which today would seem unbearable, you lived, looked around and
wrote down observations, that this right hand moved then as it does today,
when we may be wiser because we are able to look back upon our former
condition, and for that very reason have got to admit the courage of our
earlier striving in which we persisted even in sheer ignorance." —Franz Kafka, The Diaries 1910-1923
Does it feel like
you have more time right now? Your life has slowed down a bit. Not so many
social obligations to soak up your ‘free’ time. What are you doing with this
supposed ‘free’ time? Binge watching Netflix, checking social media more often,
or just sitting around figuring out what to do next.
No matter what it
feels like, you do not have more ‘time’. In fact each day you have less time.
Less ‘life-time.’ We are each allotted only so much ‘life-time.’ The irony is
we don’t know how much. Yet we act as though our ‘life-time’ will never end. We
use it up as though it is free and unlimited. It’s not. Each day that passes is
one day less that we have. One day we will never get back.
So how did you
use that day? Yesterday. Do you remember? How about those seven days last
week? Last month? Last year? You’re not getting them back. They’re ‘spent.’
Gone forever.Yes, whether you realize it or not the most
valuable thing you have is ‘time.’ And you only have so much to ‘spend.’ You
can’t save it. You can only ‘spend’ it. And every moment once spent is gone
forever. And one day too, so is your life. You probably don’t want to think
about that, but you should. There will come a last time for everything. The
last time to enjoy your favorite meal. The last time to hear the voice of
someone you love. The last time you will have the opportunity to be kind, to
forgive, or tell someone you love them. Yes, there will be ‘the’ last time for
everything in our lives. We just don’t know when.
There is a way to
capture the ‘time’ of your life, however. To hang on to some of it. To weave it
into a tapestry. And that is to write about it. Not all of it. Not every moment
of course. But just enough so perhaps you remember more of it. A way to learn
about who you are from the way you spend your ‘invaluable’ time. Keeping a
journal of your life allows you to remember what was important, what you
thought, what you did, what you accomplished, and who you spent time with. Keeping a journal helps to
reflect on who were, who you are, and who you are becoming. The habit of keeping a journal might even
help you appreciate that some things you did yesterday may never happen again.
The Stoic philosophers
were keenly aware of the fleeting nature of our existence, and that we do not
live our lives consistent with this unwavering fact. Their principles of ‘time’ awareness can be summarized as follows:
1.
Momento
mori-remember that you are mortal and will someday die;
2.
Time is more valuable than possessions, treat
it that way;
3.
Say NO to things that don’t matter;
4.
Reflect on each day, so you can live the next
more fully;
6.
Carpe
diem, quam minimum credula postero-pluck the day, trust as little as
possible that you will have tomorrow.[ii]
So now that you have more
‘free’ time, capture some of your life. Before its gone.
Painting: "Dear Diary", Benjamin Casiano
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