The Value of Time

When asked- what is the most valuable gift? My answer would be TIME.

Time is priceless and the most valuable gift given to anyone. There is nothing greater than TIME.

Let’s talk about time. Time is the most valuable gift any of us have. A lot of people, if asked say HEALTH. You could debate health but ultimately it does not matter how healthy you are if you run out of TIME. I have read where an athlete is running marathon and collapses on the course and passes away- or my idea for this website was TJ a friend from high school. TJ was very healthy and had a brain aneurysm and passed away suddenly. Time was over for them and their loved ones.

Time is everything. No one really knows when their time will end here on Earth. So everyday every second should be spent living your best life. Everyone thinks this and says it but who actually lives it? Not many people that I have seen in my lifetime. I probably do not do it enough. I do try to make each the very best I can. I do not leave the house with a kiss and saying I love you.

I get life has challenges and there is always going to be TIME of grieving and times when life is very hard. The idea is to be thankful for your time here and try to make each day as positive as you can. 

If searched there are a lot of quotes on TIME:

 Time isn’t the main thing it’s the only thing.

 Time is what we want most, but what we use worst

 Time is like a river. You cannot touch the same water twice because the flow that has passed will never pass again. Enjoy every moment of life.

 An inch of time is an inch of gold, but you can’t buy that inch of time with an inch of gold.

 Life, if well lived is long enough

 Time waits for no one – (This is so true time never stops it waits for no one- No matter how bad your day is or how you feel time keeps moving along.)

One of the best time quotes is:

 Time is free, but it’s priceless. You can’t own it, but you can use it. You can’t keep it, but you can spend it. Once you’ve lost it you can never get it back.

We are all going to run out of time. Some people run out of time at an extremely young age- Some live a long life and pass away at 100 years old or more! What time we have we all should cherish and be thankful for each day and that we get another day to be with our loved ones or make a difference in the world. Each day is a new opportunity to be kind to people, help someone, smile, coach, watch a movie, be positive, take a walk, take a nap, and be a good person.

People seem to think they have plenty of time. They waste the gift of time by being upset, not forgiving, negative, complaining, rushing around, listening to the media, feeling helpless, worrying, and just being unhappy. There are so many things out of our control and we can’t waste time or be negative over  things we can not control. Time will pass and so will the bad times or the storm you are currently dealing with.

It seems like we always cherish TIME when it is too late – It is after a cancer diagnosis. We want to live life to the fullest or check off our bucket list of dreams. I have learned that tragedy can strike at any moment a “normal day” can be changed in a second and turn your life upside down. A heart attack-a medical emergency- a car accident- a shooting- tragic accident playing outside – there are so many life changing events. It could be us in the emergency or it could be a loved one. It is a phone call away for all of us.

So why do we let ourselves to fall into days of not being thankful for the time we have here?

Time can be viewed so many different ways- 

First – we all have A time that we will pass away. It is a blessing the time we do have here on earth with our loved ones. So how do you use your time while you are here? 

When my father passed away it was a really hard time for me to process him being gone. His time was up here on earth. I was not going to receive any more calls from him, he was not going to come watch my boys play sports, he was not going to stop over to visit us, no more Father’s Day with my Dad, and most of all no more conversations/advice/ stories it is all gone. You can’t go back – the memories you made is what you have. I did a lot with my dad, and I have a lot of great memories. I wish I had more time to make more memories. I wished I could go back and grab that dinner I was too busy for or take that trip to the NASCAR race he wanted too. I look back and think about all the time I lost and wished I could have a redo and get all that extra time with him back.

My aunt- my dad’s sister told me – There is never a good time to lose someone you love – you will always want more time with them. She is right – it does not matter if my dad lived two more years, four, or ten more years at the end of his life – I would want more time. To hear more stories or have more laughs and just have him here with us. 

I often think about tragedies in our world. I have lived through some bad moments that really stick with me still to this day. On 9/11 I think about how many lives started that day normal. It was going to be a good day- Off to work – off to catch a plane never thinking their time is about to be up. In an instant life is forever changed – kids lost parents – spouses lost their partners- parents lost kids. I still listen and watch specials on 9/11. You hear voice messages from those who knew their lives were going to be over soon calling to talk or leave messages for loved ones- just to say I love you. This is so heart breaking-  We all should think about that and how lucky we are to have another day with those we love.

Another horrible life changing day for me that still sticks in my head is Sandy Hook elementary this one was hard for me – at the time I had an older son and two little ones- it was hard to think about dropping my kids off at what should be a safe place for the day-school. Parents do this every day and run off to work. I drive my three little ones to school now they are in 5th- 3rd and 1st grade. We play music in the car – sing and dance- laugh – talk about the day – talk about after school – tell them have a great day and to be kind to the other students and say I love you as they jump out of the car. I can’t help but think about that day for so many parents- how do you survive that? Talk about wishing you had more time. I know several people who have lost children and I admire their strength. I know there is not a single day that goes by that they do not think about their child. I still look up stories about that day and often think about all those little kids and how so many people were affected in a matter of minutes. It is one of the most heart-breaking tragedies I have seen. There are so many more where lives are turned upside down in the blink of an eye. No one could ever prepare for events like these. 

The Country Song Til’ you Can’t reminds me of Time…..

As the song goes…………

So take that phone call from your momma and just talk away

Cause you’ll never know how bad you wanna til you can’t someday

Don’t wait on tomorrow cause tomorrow may not show 

Say your sorries, your I-love-yous, cause man you never know

… If you got a chance, take it, take it while you got a chance

If you got a dream, chase it, cause a dream won’t chase you back

If you’re gonna love somebody

Hold em as long and as strong and as close as you can

Til you can’t

We all should cherish TIME and value each minute we have here with people we care about and love. If tomorrow never came would all your loved ones know how much they meant to you? Sometimes it is nice to just sit and watch a sun rise or sunset – listen to the Ocean – maybe skip that extra practice and go get some ice cream. Smile a little more – laugh a little- don’t take life so serious- do something kind for someone it goes a long way…..

I hope all of us try harder to enjoy the TIME we have. I hope everyone lives long, happy, and has a full meaningful life.