Twitches in Time

The date on this issue of The Prospect-News is December 21 - the winter solstice. In school I learned what the earth does on this day. What stuck with me is that it marks the shortest of the year.

Seems a bummer, but maybe not. Last week we had several consecutive days with no sunshine. If that is the case today, no matter how brief the daylight, nighttime will seem forever away. A bright day vibrant with light that seems to pulsate will truly seem ultra brief.

The clock on the wall measures the exact same amount of minutes but our habitual perceptions determine the attitudes we project onto the passing of time.

Time playing with a happy child whizzes by, but it stretches into infinity with a precious one we can’t console.

Get engrossed in a thrilling movie and it ends too quickly. Sit through one that fails to excite and time ticks in slow-motion even if the film is short.

Blind dates may not be a thing these days - which seems like a wise development - but if the maker of the match misses the mark, time stops; it doesn’t march anywhere but in endless circles. If it goes well, however, we might look for a rewind button to experience the fun just a little longer.

Take off on a much-anticipated road trip, with joy in the journey equaling adventure at the destination - we feel snatched up in a sci-fi travel beam. Dread the drive and watch a clock take hours to move minutes while we pine for a Scotty to rescue us.

The magic is noticing the moment, not comparing it to the past or missing it altogether by focusing on time that hasn’t yet arrived.

“Time flies like an arrow; fruit flies like a banana.” Anthony G. Oettinger