“The future is something which everyone reaches at the rate of 60 minutes an hour, whatever he does, whoever he is.” ~C.S. Lewis, author
Stop for just a moment and think about the last 60 minutes. An hour ago, those minutes were your future. Now? They are your past.
What did you accomplish in that span of time?
And before you say, “Nothing,” and groan and think how you wasted your time … stop again. Sometimes doing nothing isn’t a waste of time. Sometimes doing nothing is exactly the best use of our time. Resting. Regrouping. Being still.
I am often driven by my To Do list. I evaluate success by the number of things I’ve crossed off. The more black lines slashed through words, the more I’ve achieved.
Is life truly tallied by what I’ve done or not done? Is life about grabbing all the gusto I can get and shoving it into the next 60 minutes?
In Your Words: Do you have a favorite quote about time? I’d love to have you share it in a comment below! What did the last 60 minutes look like for you? What do the next 60 minutes hold?
Comments 10
Up early, rested, thrilled I get to see grandchildren later so will work hard until then 🙂
Using the minutes to be ready for the future minutes … good one, Dee!
Great post, Beth. 🙂 I know some quotes about time, but they escape this tired brain right now. 🙂 My last 60 minutes held getting ready for the day ahead. The next 60 minutes, Lord willing, holds breakfast with my kids, carpool, and helping out at the school. My goal for today is to be “all there” in each moment of this day. 🙂
Jeanne, I like the idea of being “all there” in the minutes of the day!
My last 60 minutes look like they usually do on weekdays – a madcap rush to make it to work and then half an hour of chatting it up with coworkers before we actually settle in. Also, I ate a piece of string cheese since the Lucky Charms (a bday present to myself – I never allow myself sugary cereal anymore!!) just didn’t do it for me like they used to. 🙂 Pretty exciting hour…hehe…But seriously, great post. I think you’re right: sometimes doing nothing, just resting is a great use of time.
May you spend a part of each 60 minutes celebrating yourself, Melissa–be it with string cheese or Lucky Charms–whatever! 🙂
“Seize now and here the hour that is nor trust some later day.” –Horace
This quote is in a manuscript I’m editing today. Seemed apropos! But I agree with you about the value of resting. Rarely do we actually waste an hour. It’s always an investment in some way or another.
Lanita,
Thanks for sharing the quote. I like it and it goes in my quote file. Editing, eh? A woman after my own heart … and profession. 😉
My favorite part of your post was the part that each moment doesn’t need to be productive. Doing “nothing” can be a very important part of your day.
This eases me up on the “focus on the list” mentality.
Last 60 minutes….
Conference call with home office. Phone meeting with my boss. Started to reconcile my checking account. Read 2 of your posts.
Not too bad.
And thank you for spending part of your last 60 minutes reading 2 of my posts …
🙂