Intro
Last Saturday I found myself racing against time because of an appointment I didn't want to be late for. That's when I realised how much stress I was under. All because of a race against time, which ended up shortening time even more. That's when this piece popped into my head.
Early in the morning, people leave the house.
Their destination is already set inside their heads. They all have a kind of built-in GPS that constantly guides them towards their goals. For each of them, today's goal is always the most important of all. They live in a kind of chain of goals that distracts them from life.
They run, as if something that is invisible but that they value were slipping through their fingers.
They don't realise it, but they are accompanied. People run in one direction. Time silently runs, at the same speed, but in the opposite direction.
They think they are heading towards their imaginary goal. Time knows that the more they run, the more time shortens.
They delude themselves with the speed at which they run, imagining that they have more time. Time knows that this is all an illusion, and that their race against time, in an attempt to extend it, will end up being fruitless, because time never tires, it has the strength to always maintain the same speed, day and night, from here to eternity.
Time will always win the race.
They think that running gives them more time. Time knows that speed brings them closer to their final fate.
Conclusion
If you don't have much time, don't run. Otherwise, the little time you have will go even faster.
There is an old Middle Eastern story:
A man and his son are travelling to another city with their little donkey. On their way they meet another traveller going in the opposite direction. The father asks the traveller whether they’ll make it in time to reach the city they’re going to before the city gates will close. The traveller tells the father he’ll get there in time if he won’t hurry.
What a strange advice, so they spur the little donkey to hurry up. The poor animal stumbles across a stone in the sand and starts limping.
When they finally reach the city, the gates are closed and they have to spend the night in the open.
Then, the father realises how true the advice had been.
By running all the time, you also lose many moments of time when you could just make the most of the time you have by just being present.