Time Change

Tonight is the Daylight Savings Time change, when we move our clocks ahead an hour.  At 2 am, we will change our clocks to read 3 am, and we will sort of "lose" an hour.  This got me thinking.  Do we really "lose" an hour?  Is it possible to lose time?  Which hour would I choose to give up?  A dear friend of mine lost her father this week.  She knew he was dying, and was choosing to spend all the time that she could with him.  Every moment became more precious when she knew they would be few.  I remember feeling the same way when my grandpa passed away.  When Vic (my father-in-law) died suddenly, I remember regretting the times I chose not to stop by.  Lost time I'd never have the chance to spend again. 

The truth is, it's all precious.  I have another dear friend whose husband has a progressive illness.  She tells me, "Oh, we have lots of time."  I don't want to hurt her, but she's SO wrong!  I had lots of plans on the day when my heart stopped.  I never dreamed that would be the end of my time here on this planet above the dirt.  If it wasn't for God's Grace, and a lot of loving friends, it would have been. 

Even if it had been, minutes and hours would still go by.  Each hour will still have 60 minutes tonight, we'll just label them differently.  What was being called "2 o'clock" will now be called "3 o'clock".  Kind of like "Prince" and that weird symbol thing he wanted to be called. 

 Anyways, that makes me look at how I label things, too.  If 2 o'clock can be renamed 3 o'clock, then maybe "frustration" can be called "opportunity".  If my frustration helps me learn a different way to accomplish the same task.  If that's true, then maybe I can call my fears by other names.  Maybe my loneliness is really a chance to learn to reach out to others.  Maybe the times I've been cut so deeply were chances to prune some part of me that got in the way of my growth.  Certainly it is in my deepest shame that God shows his greatest Glory. Perhaps having an experience called "death" (loosely defined here as a lack of pulse) has allowed me to be truly and more fully "ALIVE".       

Alive.  With minutes ticking away.  "Like sands through the hourglass...so are the Days of Our Lives..."  (Which reminds me of my beloved Granny Barker.)  I'm going to choose not to lose my hour, how about you?   I'll use it for whatever purpose God sees fit.  If there's something that isn't worthy of that time, I pray He'll show me.  

Goodnight!  God bless!