The Association "Standing Still" (1966)
Standing Still
Time can be such a mind-bender. Time toys with us, leading us to believe that we have all the time in the world. There are those ever so brief periods when time seems to move in slow motion or even come to a stand still. Then suddenly the moment is behind us, frozen in memory, sometimes fading into the hazy realm of the forgotten or misremembered.
I think of the mundane like waiting in lines or sitting in the doctor's office. Sitting in the dentist chair waiting for the discomfort to be over. Lying on a hospital bed in the emergency room waiting for the approval to be released. There are those frustrating stretches of being late, being in a hurry, and being stuck in traffic where all the universe seems to have ground to a halt. I curse the clock and tension mounts. Then suddenly the waiting is over and I begin waiting for the next thing in life to happen.
Then there are those moments of supreme serenity when all seems well and I have latched on to a bliss that will extend to forever. Falling in love for example. Long leisurely walks or hours of togetherness with that someone with whom I feel secure in knowing that I have felt unending love. That is until it does end and time stands still with sadness and confusion.
Some of my best moments where time has come to a standstill have been times alone. In younger days I would often take long walks in the mountains to find a place to sit and contemplate. What might have been mere minutes became immeasurable stretches of time by my calculations if there had been any calculating to be done. They were times when I was accountable to only myself for the most part. No one cared how I was spending my time. Time standing still was a permissible event. The stillness of time was my acceptance of allowing leisure into my existence.
The illusion of time stopping can be a rebellion against the constraints of our daily prison of responsibility or a surrender to the circumstances of life over which we have no control. Either way time appearing to stand still or slow down is just an illusion. The clock continues to tick and the world continues to turn. My days are marked off on the calendar of my life like a depleting bank account where no deposits are ever made.
When does time seems to stand still for you? Are you more aware of time now than you used to be? Have you used your time wisely? How do you squander your time?
I squander my time on the internet that's for sure! Time came to a complete halt in 2011 when I was getting divorced and packing to move back east. I truly felt like my target move out date of June 23 was never going to arrive. And here we are in 2013 and the spring is flying by and it's nearly May.
ReplyDeleteI think as we get older time matters more and more. For instance, I'm on hold right now waiting for a webinar to start and thought I would read your post and have time to write a nice comment and I can hear them saying they are almost ready and it stresses me to have to hurry!
ReplyDeleteWish I had more time, but that's the story of my life! Nice post!
Time is amazing when you listen to the old clocks tick and tick and tick.
ReplyDeleteThank you,
Susan
Garden of Eden Blog
Time - ah.. Father Time. I'm listening to the song as I write. Here today, gone tomorrow. I like it when time seems to stand still, instead of just rushing by or there seem to be endless time constraints. I'm wondering what JoJo means when she writes '..2013 and the spring is flying by..' is she doing time travel - backwards? I think that as I get older, time seems more limited somehow .. and more valuable. Thank you Arlee, a thought provoking post. (from the other Susan)
ReplyDeleteGarden of Eden Blog
Wow this is profound and depressing "My days are marked off on the calendar of my life like a depleting bank account where no deposits are ever made".
ReplyDeleteI guess it's true, but....
:)
I wish I could say I have good moments where time stands still. Anymore, though, time only stops in those "watched pot never boils" moments. Great song, anyway.
ReplyDeleteJoJo -- I can relate to those times of divorce. Some of the most tedious times of my life.
ReplyDeleteAlicia --- When I was younger I didn't value time in the way that I do now. Thanks for taking the time to visit.
Susan E.-- And then when they chime that can really make you jump.
Susan Scott-- I can understand JoJo's year mistake. I'm forever forgetting my age.
Teresa -- I was feeling a bit melancholy when I wrote this, but yes it is true--how else can one make it better without thinking of eternity in Heaven or something of that nature?
CW -- Great song from a great album.
Lee
I remember once a long time ago I mentioned to someone that I would love to be in prison. They were stunned! Why would I say something like that? Why would I want to ever be in prison? My response? So I could spend days and days and never-ending days just reading!
ReplyDeleteI was dumb and naive back then, but still would love to just have time to spend days reading and now writing as well!