TIME AND TIDE WAIT FOR NONE

 FROM SAMPATH’S DESK:

 

TIME AND TIDE WAIT FOR NONE

 DON’T MISS THE BUS

RACE AGAINST TIME

 

Time and tide wait for none. Unlike other tangible things, time keeps on moving. It can neither be stopped, nor stored, nor saved. In other words, the clock cannot be put back. Time lost will never come back. Again, it can be neither recovered, nor restored, nor recouped. Once you let the time pass, it’s gone forever.

 

Fallen flowers cannot climb back. So, don’t think about or brood over the past which is wasteful. Love and live the present, if possible, with a beautiful attire of smile.

 

A closed mouth catches no flies/worms but an eager and early bird does it. Prioritize things and have clarity of your mission and vision with clear and well-defined targets and goalposts and tirelessly work to achieve them. If you run after two hares, you're most likely to miss both.

 

The term ‘Don’t miss the bus’ has the same connotation. Be in the right spot at the right time to catch the right bus. Missing the bus will cost you dearly - physically and mentally. Preparedness, readiness, and punctuality are the sine qua non.

 

Here are some tips for time management:

 

• Prioritize your tasks
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• Learn and practice multi-tasking slowly and steadily but never compromise, but maintain quality for quantity.
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• Chalk out a timetable and strictly follow it.
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• Be diligent, dedicated, discerning, distinct, disciplined, and well-directed towards the target and goalpost.
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• Have an uncompromising will to succeed and achieve.

  

Race against time is a common thing transcending all echelons of society - rich or poor, educated or uneducated, common men, VIPs, celebrities, people of any society, country, region, continent, religion, creed, and the like, unless and/or otherwise one prefers to be deliberately and wantonly lazy.

 

I have had weird experiences. Sometimes, what I considered as a simple and easy takeaway that can be got done just like that would get enmeshed and entangled in aspects and angles one would not have even thought of, resulting in delay, maybe, of some days or even weeks. Contrarily, what I feared as a complex and complicated thing likely to be long-winded and time-consuming would be got done in a jiffy!

 

Sometimes when you concentrate on the minute details of a problem, you tend to lose sight of the overall picture; in other words, if you dwell too much on the insignificant, rather than the important aspects, you will get distracted. Yes, you can’t afford to see the wood for the trees. So, avoid mind-wandering for nothing and focus on the relevant overall picture.

 

 

To realize the value of time of –

One year – ask an examination candidate

One month – ask a salaried person

One day - ask a person in fasting

One hour – ask a waiting lover

One minute – ask a person who has missed a bus or train

One second – ask a person who has escaped from an accident

 

Office going - a typical race against time but still a pleasant experience once - became strenuous as days passed by with commuting proving to be a daily uphill task in Chennai where I had, like many others, the place of residence and workplace far apart from each other. One had to take all modes of transport - train, bus, auto, stretching the legs, etc. - to and fro - between the workplace and home. Those who had their home and workplace not far away from each other were a fortunate lot. And if one were to have a two-wheeler or four-wheeler, it would be advantageous. Even then, there would be some hassles for them from the road traffic point of view.

I narrate below an incident where even a time delay made me comfortable.

 

Once I had been to my friend’s house. The plan was that I should join him in his house before both ventured out on a joint mission. He was not at home at the agreed time. I enquired with his spouse to learn that he had gone out on very urgent work but got held up there and would be back soon. Turning a little peeved, piqued, and chagrined which I did not show in the open, I reconciled to the fact that there was no other option except to wait for him in his house. After writhing and squirming in boredom for a while on the sofa set, I spoke to my friend who pleaded excuse for being late and requested me to put up with the inconvenience and still worse, pleaded for some more time. Though outwardly I told him, “It’s okay”, I became edgy and vapid inside having to kill the time for nothing. I muttered sotto voce thus, "Oh My God, why is this bad time that makes me wait for long, testing my patience"! However, I pretended ‘no problem’ outwardly.

 

After a few minutes passed I became further fidgety. However, I didn’t know a magic was on the way that surfaced soon to break my discomfort. The children of my friend, a toddler and another older by two years, came running to the hall where I was sitting awaiting my friend’s arrival, fondling and nudging each other. Blushing in discomfort on seeing me, both were heard screaming, “Oh, somebody has come to our house!” However, they immediately closed their ranks and shyly gazed at me. After a pause, as if to make peace, I made them shake hands and started interacting with them which took me to a crescendo of joy. Whenever I look at a baby, toddler, or young child, I feel like smiling, hugging, and playing with them. You know, a child smiles and feels happy for nothing. But, since I was there to closely interact with them, their joy found no bounds. There is a hidden child in everyone wanting to play which I saw in myself. How then could I be an exception?

 

Even as I enjoyed the children’s company, my mind started shuttling back through the memory lane of my pleasant experiences with children in the past.

 

After my friend returned, we left and reached our destination with a delay, but still got our work completed easily and successfully without any hitch or hassles and within a short time. Ironically, even if we had reached there much earlier than we had planned, it would not have made any difference at all because the work desk opened with a delay. I thanked God for giving me an exciting and ecstatic sojourn with the children in my friend’s house, who saved me from suffering an otherwise vexatious wait there. Yes, it was a blessing in disguise indeed! 

   

R.SAMPATH

9/12/2024