The Absent Uncle: Time and life: We shouldn't waste either

Time. Such an interesting word. It can be a noun, an adjective, a word to define a period, and something so much of us waste. 

Daily.

Over the years I have begun to take on the habit of my mother. Reading the obituaries. She was always interested in the organization of the obits (obituaries) in the local papers of the cities I lived in. Did they organize by alphabet or by date? It always fascinated her – she had absolutely no knowledge of the persons she was reading about – but read about them she did.

Her preference was by date – time ought to expire and thus be recorded in an orderly fashion in each locality. I remember a conversation with her about this subject and she reflected it didn’t much more matter to her anymore because in her town, everyone was younger than she was – at least 90 for this conversation – and she didn’t know them anyway. 

So, let’s get back to time. 

We all start in our youth. We’re kids with long lives ahead of us. I remember doing the math in my head and seeing an almost unlimited number of years ahead. Then we move on. Getting to our 20’s, our 30’s, 40’s, and beyond – if we are fortunate. Then time takes on a different meaning. Time no longer seems unlimited, but instead limited and – upon reflection – even short! 

For example, my recently passed away sister once told me that life was like a roll of toilet paper, the closer to the end, the quicker it goes. A bit of humor that masks reality.

And that brings me to part of the sentence in my first paragraph. “And something so much of us waste.” I’m guilty of that. I wonder of how many of us are. 

As I review the obits, I look at the age of the person, compare to mine, feel good or bad at the comparison, and keep scanning the rest. When you don’t know the person, it becomes a bit more  less personable, but still a reminder about life for all of us – it is coming to the same end. 

Don’t waste it.