Where did the time go? Many of us ask that question several times a week. It starts with where did the day go and, as we age, increasingly becomes a question of where have the years gone.
How do we react to this sense of acceleration in the passage of time? We know we cannot slow time or regain lost time.
We may feel guilty about having wasted time over the years. We should not feel guilt. We did what we did with our time; we will get no “do-over.”
In point of fact, real time never changes. There are now and always have been twenty four hours in every day; one rotation of the earth is one day.
So, why does time seem to be going faster? For those, like me, who are in the late years of life, the answer has to do with our awareness of how much time has already passed. Combine that with our awareness of how little time remains in our lives. “Time flies” says it for many of us.
Children don’t share our adult perspective of time. They seem obliviously to the passage of time; they have so much of it left to live. Watching them “waste time” can be aggravating.
The article below is well worth reading. It explains how the development of a child’s brain regulates their sense of time. The article also provides some methods adults can employ to enjoy time.
https://www.nbcnews.com/better/health/why-our-sense-time-speeds-we-age-how-slow-it-ncna936351
Now get out there and enjoy your day.
The only way to combat the shrinking time effect of aging is to sleep less and to make the most of each day! But you are right: we should never feel guilty for what we failed to do. Each of our lives is unique, as is what we choose to do with it. 🙂 Thanks for another fine thought-provoking piece.
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