Time Well Spent – January 09, 2000
Not many years ago, we looked to a new millennium as a distant, almost surreal event. It loomed like science fiction—like a horizon we couldn’t reach. While the world didn’t turn out to be as different as some had predicted, we were nevertheless caught off-guard, unsure of our lives.
The passage of time, because it’s unhurried and constant, often escapes our notice. Those confronted by challenges and grief eventually discover that time really does pass, and sorrows soften. Parents at weddings marvel with tear-filled eyes at how “only yesterday” their children were babies. Birthdays and holidays seem to catch us by surprise, and antique stores suddenly seem filled with objects from our childhood.
Time on earth is a gift from God, but it’s a perishable gift. It cannot be put aside on a shelf for later use, or reimbursed if we squander it. The minutes and hours we possess are more precious than honors and accolades, more valuable than money and other assets.
Time spent with family is the best time of all, for those are the moments that shape our destiny and the lives of our loved ones. Those are the minutes that tell who we really are. Time spent teaching, giving, and showing love is time that builds what we become.
Just as the 1900s were gone before we really knew it, so opportunities to spend time with those who matter most speed by. Cousins move away, children grow up, elders pass on, and we find ourselves thinking, “If only . . .”
This new era is a chance to ride the crest of time instead of letting it pass us by. Knowing how suddenly this year came, we can start to use each day more wisely, spending time with special people before another year is upon us. Like cash and coins, we have a limited amount to spend. The test of a new millennium will be how we improve on the time we have been given—how we better the shining moments we have.
Program #3673