Living Whole: Time May be Finite…Moments are Infinite

by Maggie French

There May Be Only 24 Hours in a Day . . . There Are Immeasurable Moments.

With the theme of this issue of Cape Women Online being, "Crayons and Cranberries, Cape Cod has something for everyone" I think about how Labor Day has already come and gone. The cliché, "Where did the time go?" fills the air for the many things that I was going to do over the summer that simply got away from me.

Why? What keeps us from doing all the things we wanted to do? In a word . . . Time.

We focus our lives on the hours, the minutes, and the seconds we have in a day. Our on-going struggle is with minutes and hours. The conflict of who is "in charge," is it Me or Time? We are so anxious about losing time that we end up watching seconds and minutes slip away.

There are 24 hours or 1,440 minutes or 86,400 seconds in a day, all finite measurements.

When first I open my eyes, no, when first I return from the realm of sleep, I become aware of the day. There is no beginning, no end, simply moments flowing one to another. Oh, to live in this infinite bliss, Time irrelevant.

Then Time stands front and center, informing me it is 6:47 AM shouting, "Appointments need to be kept! So if you are going to go running, Maggie, it must be done NOW! Oh, and all those emails and voice messages must be addressed before Noon. Don't forget you're helping your neighbor move some furniture this afternoon," etc. etc.

Time begins metering out, drop by drop, its precious seconds that, if unaccounted for, will fall away and be lost forever.

Can you think of something you were so focused on doing that when you finally looked at a clock you were surprised how little time had passed?

I can see your head nodding up and down. When we shift our attention to what we are doing, our perception shifts to the moment, and moments are immeasurable.

Moments are never lost. Each moment is a rendering of your living. The connecting of your moments is the true fresco that is the distinctive You. The sensations of your body, the sounds of nature around you, the sense of all that makes your life lies in each single moment.

Tic . . . Toc . . . Time wants to be "in charge," to remind you of your many "To Dos" and all your "Shoulds."

When Time is allowed to rule, you may feel inadequate for the seconds you let fall away unused, forever lost. As the days progress, these seconds accumulate such that the enormity in the lost minutes overcomes the awareness of the moments still before you.

Can seconds and moments co-exist? Can a finite second exist in an infinite moment?

Can the infinite moments of your day exist with the finite seconds of time? Does balance exist between this finite and infinite?

A soft voice says, "Yes."

It need be neither Time nor You leading your day. There is a place where both can balance together.

It begins with an awareness that time is neither good nor bad, wrong nor right. Time is the measurement of life's moments, the landmarks for your memories and navigation points for your hopes and dreams.

The day your child was born, the year you bought your home, the day you will get that promotion, the perfect vacation planned for your next birthday, such moments are the endless chain by which you live your life. Moments you then describe to others, cloaked in hours and minutes; at 9AM you did this, at 2PM you will do that.

There are an infinite number of moments, from sunrise to sunrise, and these moments are your opportunities for Living Whole. This is the true meaning of Presence.

Time is simply a marker stone of a certain point in your life. You and Time can be partners, can share in this space, neither one being "in charge." Simply being, as both are meant to be, Time is your landmark of pasts and your navigation points to your future.

Moments are the space in which you experience, you master, you contemplate, you are . . . all that you are.

All Photographs Courtesy of Maggie French

EXERCISE - Since the first of the year, this section offered responses to individuals' questions. These responses are tools for your toolbox of Balance.

Going forward, I will continue to offer tools that supplement the contents of the article rather than answer individuals' questions. Please enjoy.

FEELING INFINITE MOMENTS - When you get up in the morning, are there little things you do around the house that have you feeling like you're wasting precious seconds?

Well, let's see just how much time these trying little tasks really do consume.

Make a list of five (5) things you do in the morning that you feel rob you of precious Time. Tomorrow morning, before you begin these nasty little errands, set your microwave timer for three (3) minutes, then go about doing these items.

See how many you can complete before the timer runs out.

Remember to focus on what you are doing.

I believe you will be surprised, when you remain "in the moment," at just how few seconds these items really take to complete.

Notice how simply knowing this gives you more moments!

Maggie French is a certified, ICF-credentialed coach. She specializes in work/life coaching, because "If you want to makes improvements in one, there will be effects in the other."

Maggie collaborates with several organizations on the Cape including WE CAN, the Harwich Chamber of Commerce and the Cape Cod Chapter of ABWA.

Visit maggie's website: http://www.maggiefrenchcpc.com

You can reach Maggie at 774 212 1826
or email her at balance@maggiefrenchcp.com

A whole life is about finding your balance.

Living Whole Coaching's focus is to assist you in identifying what creates your stability. What do you value? What is your reason for being? What do you want to accomplish?

Living Whole Coaching has individual and workshop offerings for the exploration of the answers to these and other questions that will bring harmony into your living and the means to live whole.

Schedule Your Complimentary Consultation

A Complimentary Consultation is an opportunity for a 1-to-1 personal consultation to experience the power of coaching to bring personal growth and balance to your life.

Call 774 212 1826 or email Maggie to schedule a Complimentary Consultation today. Experience the Power of Coaching: http://www.maggiefrenchcpc.com