The thing about time.
Those beautiful wise little eyes.
“That's the thing with time, isn't it? It's not all the same. Some days - some years - some decades - are empty. There is nothing to them. It's just flat water. And then you come across a year, or even a day, or an afternoon. And it is everything. It is the whole thing.”
― Matt Haig, How to Stop Time
My first grandchild, a boy, was born in March. And along with all the joy, giggles, and sweet smells I’ve been rolling this notion of time around in my mind and heart. It truly feels like yesterday when my own two children were my constant companions.
I’m keeping my grandson while his parents work, and it’s hard to describe, but watching him grow so quickly and seeing him learn new things every single day makes me wonder; why exactly do we worry about little things? A mess in the living room floor? A lost pair of sunglasses? The laundry? An offhanded remark?
I get that some big things like a health crisis or a job loss require us to pause and take concern (and action), but some of the things I’ve found myself fretting over in my life are just so not worth the time they’ve robbed from me.
It’s fascinating to me. My tiny grandson has absolutely no concept of time. He also never seems to worry. He’s living each moment exactly as it happens. He’s full of joy and wonder and delight. He’s not thinking about the future, or what he did last night, or how he’ll make ends meet. He has no regrets. He never, ever worries about what someone thinks of him. He’s just happy being right where he is…
In the moment.
Not all his moments are prefect (I have an annoying habit of forgetting his diaper bag for instance). He just seems so keenly aware of the gift and adventure of each new moment. Since I’ve been hanging out with him a lot, he’s also given me the gift of really standing in each moment as it’s handed to me. I’ll always, always be thankful to him for this gift. I’m sure I felt this joy and understanding when my own kids were little, but with the pressures of being a mom, working and all that comes with that I’m not sure I was able to “slow down” and really get the most important message a child brings us. This idea of “slowing down”.
Yes, I am talking to all my young Mama friends out there.
A song I have on repeat these days is from Andrew Durhon and it’s called Slow Down. (Promise me you’ll take a few minutes and listen to it.) I often write the words SLOW DOWN on my chalkboard in the kitchen. My dear niece Alice wrote the word PLEASE after those words the other day and it made my heart smile.
Yes. Please Time, SLOW DOWN.
For many reasons, life for me lately has been like sparkling water, fizzy and loud and full of excitement. I don’t have a lot of time for things that don’t matter. And you know what? I think I’m finally getting the hang of truly slowing down… like Andrew says in his in his beautiful lyrics, “all we really have is right here, right now…”
Love, Robbin
