One of the great pieces of "mythology" in the Human Experience is this notion that there's some magical mystical day that will come — somewhere out in an uncertain future — when we will have "more time."
"More Time," that is, to do all those things we really want to do, but decide that we don't "have time" to do now because we're too busy doing other things that take up all our time.
Newsflash: We pretty much have the same amount of time, all the time. Now. In the past. In the future.
What the whole "more time" mythology really revolves around is priority setting.
"But I Set Priorities, All the Time!"
On a superficial level, that is absolutely true! Yes, you do.
Put in overtime instead of doing Yoga. Eat TV dinners rather than cook, so you can do Yoga. Do Yoga so you have enough fitness and flexibility to work in the garden. Put in overtime so you can afford garden tools.
"Time shuffling has become such an integral part of our lives that we barely give it a second thought.
The problem is that most of us are great at planning and setting functional priorities while having no real idea of what's TRULY important to us!
As always, there are exceptions. But honestly, authentically "woke" people — and not "woke" in that media-fed creepy caricature way — are few and far between.
Most of us live in the surface layers, and never find the time to delve any deeper...
What is it You REALLY Want?
It's a question many of us have contemplated along the way, but we rarely think about it in depth. And that's where we can get in trouble... or at least end up misdirecting ourselves.
So we end up with "something that LOOKS like my ideal life but I'm not entirely convinced this is what actually makes me happy..."
Not surprising, perhaps. In our fast moving world, we're exposed to thousands of images every day, via the people we observe, TV shows, movies, marketing messages and more. These rapidly moving vignettes serve us up a cornucopia of possibilities, and we end up picking and choosing "the content of our lives" a bit like we assemble a meal on our trays in a cafeteria line.
And then we feel somehow... empty... or disappointed... when the end result seems somewhat substandard.
Question: When was the last time you have a 5-star meal at a cafeteria?
Think about it... not literally, but from the perspective of the analogy.
The Consciously Chosen Life
"Choices have consequences."
Much as we'd like to think otherwise — remember saying "It wasn't me!" when you were a kid? — all our choices have consequences.
In the late 1990's, I chose to only work full time at things I could do from the comfort of my home. I declared myself "done" with working for others, with having bosses, with having a set schedule, with having to deal with manipulative co-workers, and with being focused in ONE specific direction.
That choice was deliberate, but part of the choice was also accepting and embracing that the attendant "perks" that go with a six-figure income would go away. No more new cars and $5,000 paintings!
Now, in the realm of setting priorities, we have to be willing to get intimate with what's truly important to us.
And so, we come full circle to the original issue of not only setting priorities, but of having time for things.
Having ENOUGH Time!
Our priorities will not be the same, all the time.
Earlier this month and last, it felt like I "didn't have enough time" because I somehow needed to raise $6,700 to pay property taxes... or we'd lose our home to tax foreclosure.
I like where we live; we've spent 10+ years creating a home and it's where we have land and an investment in growing our own food. I could have "more time" if I chose to live in a tent in a horse pasture... but I don't want to live in a tent in a horse pasture.
Which leads to the part of the equation that it's not enough to just "identify and have" priorities, you have to commit to and work on them. And maybe that means you don't get to do what you want, all the time. Once again, choices have consequences.
Personal experience tells me that much of the world's distress and unhappiness is rooted in the false notion that you can make choices without having to deal with their consequences.
Even if you think that's actually possible, it's not... what goes around, comes around. Maybe not right now, maybe not tomorrow, maybe not next month or next year... but it will come back, eventually...
I won't explore that whole "entitlement" angle; that's enough material for a whole different post!
Anyway, do make the time to choose what you really want... chances are you'll "miraculously" find that you have more time than you think!
Thanks for reading, and have a great rest of your week!
How about YOU? Do you have "enough" time? Have you ever wished you had MORE time? What are you NOT doing, that you COULD be doing? Are you choosing what you actually want, or just plowing on ahead in the moment? Comments, feedback and other interaction is invited and welcomed! Because — after all — SOCIAL content is about interacting, right? Leave a comment — share your experiences — be part of the conversation!
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Created at 20210330 16:52 PDT
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