“You’re right, after subtracting the time we spend keeping ourselves alive, eating and sleeping, there is very little time left for actually doing something important; something worthwhile.”
“Yes and don’t forget the time we spend working to pay for the food we eat and a place to sleep.”
“Oh that’s right and if you add in the time we spend shopping, cooking and cleaning…”
“… making the bed, changing the sheets, brushing our teeth, going to the bathroom, …”
“OK, when you add all of that time up; all of the hours we spend just keeping ourselves rested and fed, what are you left with?”
“Hold up, we need to add in our pastimes. You know, watching TV, reading, stuff we do to decompress, relax, recover.”
“That’s true but those things aren’t really living, contributing – they are just ways we pass time – hence the term – pastimes.”
“Good point – so when you really get down to it – how much time do we spend, in our whole lives – not eating, sleeping or passing time – you know – doing something important, lasting?”
“Well I used to think Lance Armstrong was a good role model. He dedicated a lot of time towards something that seemed important; winning the Tour de France, and working for people with cancer. But now look at all that effort, arguably gone to waste. His titles were all taken away and the people associated with his foundation are left questioning the worth of all their efforts.”
“True, now add up all the time he has to spend repairing all of that damage.”
“I guess if you’re not honest; if you’re not honorable – you are spending your time hurting and destroying rather than contributing and helping.”
“Yes and the newspapers and history books are littered with these infamous people, Richard Nixon and Bernie Madoff.”
“OK, but if we ARE honest, and honorable – how much time do we have – I mean after you subtract our biological duties and pastimes? How many minutes each day are left?”
“Well, I can tell you that some days are so busy, so hectic – that I have NO time for doing something worthwhile. I’m just surviving man!”
“Amen to that! So how many days a week? And on those days – how many minutes do we dedicate to something other than tending to our biological needs and pastimes?”
“That is the question, isn’t it. Let’s just say, optimistically, we spent an hour or so every other day, working honestly, selflessly on something worthwhile; something important. Not that I am, but that would respectable amount of time. Right?”
“Well let’s see, on average we live sixty, seventy years of which fifteen to twenty are spent being a baby, or a kid…”
“… or convalescing or ill? Let’s say we have forty or fifty good years? Split the difference forty five?”
“Ok that’s about 12,000 hours if you do the math. That’s a lot of time – right?”
“All together – if we spent forty five good years, every other day, spending a good hour and a half working on something important, something selfless and honorable, not eating or sleeping related or passing time – then yeah – 12,000 hours is a lot of time. That’s about 500 days.”
“Wait – that’s only one full year and up to May of the following year. “
“Wow – that’s it huh? One year and then to May of the next – not eating, sleeping, tending to eating and sleeping or passing time?”
“Scary!”
“And just think – we spent the last fifteen minutes talking about this – instead of doing something important.”
“Yeah – and now I’m hungry – let’s get something to eat.”
“Sounds good – let’s do that – then I have to get to the grocery store.”
“Me too, I’ll join you. And why don’t you come over for dinner”
“Ok – but I have to catch American Idol tonight. You?”
“Wouldn’t miss it.”
“Great let’s go.”
Flash of Truth (a poem by Sal)
(Warning: Imagination required ahead.)
