The Gift of Time

The Gift of Time

Earlier this month we gained an hour of daylight with the change over to Daylight Savings Time. I love this change and the fact that it's still light out after dinner when my kids and I take our dog for a walk.  While it is still dark in the morning when we wake up, the later sunset in the evening is truly a blessing as our family can play outside take advantage of that extra time together.

Later in the month, we all received an unexpected gift of time, courtesy of the virus that is changing our world as we know it.  We now have this abundance of time.  The exterior factors that once governed the time and influenced many of our day-to-day decisions are no longer in effect for many of us.  Time isn't dictating when we need to get up in the morning, the time we needed to spend at work and school, the time we had to be at practices or events.  All of that has somehow been pushed aside.  Without the constraints of time, we now have choices to make on how we are going to use this gift.

Think about that.  How many times have you said, "If only I had more time."

I need more time to finish my work.  

There's never enough time to . . . 

If only there was an extra hour in the day.

If I had more time, I could . . .

Well, now you can.  We've all been given this gift of time.  

You can start that project that you've been putting off.  You can reach out to that person you've been missing.  You can spend the time doing whatever it is that you need to.  It's your time.

You can clean out that closet that you've been saying you would.  You can watch that old movie with your spouse.  You can read that extra chapter at night with the kids.  You can play that extra-long board game as a family.  Because there's time. 

There's time to do something for yourself--to take that bubble bath or read that trashy novel.  There's time to try a new recipe or take a long walk.  There's time to take extra good care of yourself and those around you.

Even though we are separated by distance, take the time to connect with those who matter most.  Take the time to reach out to a neighbor in need, to a former student, to a colleague.  Send a personal note to your best friend in another state.  Call your favorite aunt to say hello.  Set up a regular time for your kids to FaceTime their grandparents.  

Be intentional about making time to connect with others in whatever way works best for you--but take the time.

We can use our time to make a difference.  What are you doing with this gift of time?