Time

Doctor Strange is easily one of my favorite MCU superheroes. Aside from all the cool spells he’s able to cast, one of the most appealing aspects of him is his ability to manipulate time through the power of an Infinity Stone.

Superhero antics aside, time is what I’d consider to be my most valuable asset as a human being. Money, friends, and opportunities come and go, but time is the one thing I won’t regain. As morbid as this sounds, every day I live is one day closer to death. I don’t want to live in fear of death, but I get to accept that one day my time will come. Which is all the more reason to make the most of the time I do have.

My Biggest Pet Peeve

What annoys me more than anything else is I feel like my time is being wasted. When it comes to dating for instance, this includes shows up late, cancelling at the last minute, or being outright stood up. All of those have happened at some point, and to me it reeks of disrespect.

It’s become an easy place to look in the mirror. I’ve been antsy around commitments in the past, finding loopholes and giving myself easy outs, to the point where it feels like wasting other people’s time. In those cases, I’m no better than the girls that stood me up. Which is why I’m not only learning to make commitments, but to uphold them as well.

Showing up and lending my time to others is how I can encourage them to lend me their time as well. And when we’re sharing our time with each other and working on a team, it goes so much further.

I truly feel a lot more empowered and effective with my time when in the presence of trusted friends who are lending me their time and energy. And I’d like to think that they’re in turn empowered by my presence and time.

Fulfillment

Sometimes, I try to hole myself up out of fear of wasting my time on a fruitless endeavor. Ironically, that is in and of itself is a fruitless endeavor. I value breaks and downtime, but that shouldn’t become my entire existence.

I spent some time this past weekend canvassing for donations for a community service project. And how much did I raise from that? $10. Yeah, it’s a little disappointing, but I also feel fulfilled in putting myself out there and engaging with a couple dozen strangers.

I feel the most fulfilled when I’m physically and/or mentally exhausted at the end of a day. That’s how I know for myself that I did something truly productive with my time. Whether it’s taking a walk or meeting friends or working on a project, it feels good to have that sense of fatigue at the end of a race.

Lately I’ve been doing a lot with my weekends, to the point that the work week feels more restful. I’ve been traveling, going to conferences, and meeting old and new friends, among many other things, There’s a lot of opportunities out there to be fulfilled in how we use our time; we just have to be willing to commit to them rather than playing it by ear.

Parting Thoughts

Time is an interesting beast; it’s most effective when looked at from the perspective of now.

Look too far into the past and I become depressed with how I’ve wasted my time. Look too far in the future and I become anxious with all the possibilities and expectations that I place on my time. Focus on the now and I not only bring out the best in myself and others, but I pave the road for real connections.

What are you all doing with your time?