Time: What is important to you? - 22 April 2024

I know I have been writing for a week now about some of the biggest lessons motherhood has taught me. However, one of the things that I have rediscovered is the value of time. I truly look at the hours in a day with different eyes.

Time is of greater value than money at this stage of my life. Firstly, because I can see it flying by before my eyes and secondly, because there is nothing I can do to save it – nothing.

This is one of the scariest thoughts and it makes me think more deeply about my priorities. Moreover, it gets worse for me as I get older, because I am convinced that each year just flies by faster than the last one! (Wasn’t it still lockdown just the other day?!)

I think it is important that we often sit down for a moment and look at our lives. Then, we have to ask ourselves, what is important to me in this phase of my life? Ten to one, your answer will be different from mine.

It is now important for me to work hard and sometimes put in extra hours late at night, because I am still building a career. However, now I have a young family too. This means bath time at 18:00 is a priority. It is important for me to sit on the big yellow chair in my little girl’s room after bath time and read to her from her book, “Where is little kitten”?, as she sits tightly against me. (I read it at least three times – she insists. At least the story is short.) Even though it can feel like a waste of time to read the same book three times every night, it is not a waste of time for me. This is precious time that I will never get back, because one day, she will suddenly not want to listen to the story anymore.

That is also fine, because that is how life works. This is also why time and precious moments with our loved ones are important. Time is fleeting!

God has always valued time. I do not ever think that he wants us to waste our time. Therefore, we must constantly reflect about what is really important. What enriches my life? What makes me able to be a better person than I was yesterday? How am I going to spend my time today? How would God like me to spend my time?

Prayer: Lord, time is so precious and we do not always realise that. Help me to use my time wisely. Help me to know which things are more worthwhile, so that I can stop wasting time on things that do not enrich my life. Amen