As the clock ticks away, bringing us into 2023, perhaps it is opportune to meditate on the “gift of time.”

That’s right: in the current age, time is a gift. We seem to have so very little of it that it has become a rare commodity. Think about how little time we set aside for relatives and friends. We’re so caught up in work or computers or television (or all of the above) that we can’t seem to spare a moment. Sometimes it nearly seems like God has sped up time (do you ever feel that way?). Something very strange is going on. But really, we may also made things pass so fast. Everyone is suddenly too “busy.” There is no time for what they used to call “smelling the roses.” There’s no time for a human to answer a phone. We rush from one day and week and month to another with no real goal — and no real end in sight. 

Years flash.

In the age of computers, things move that much faster and life becomes almost breathless.

And yet spare a moment we must. It’s important to find balance in our lives. We all need to make sure we have full personal lives. And time is one of the best things you can give someone: setting aside moments to talk with others, to visit, to help. Unrushed. Make this one of your New Year’s resolution: to have spare time. 

It’s one of the best gifts for others — and also one of the best things you can give yourself.

[resources: books by Michael Brown]