Tick-Tock Tick-Tock by Madhura

Tick-Tock Tick-Tock by Madhura - March 2017 Scholarship Essay

In our crazy lives, we have developed a misconception of time, leaving us stressed out, burned out, and wiped out at the end of the day. This misconception of time has lead us to misuse it and abuse it, so it is imperative that we understand the element of time and learn to value every day, every hour, every minute, so we can become actively involved in our own passage of time. We should first determine what time even is. Philosopher St. Augustine describes time as the relative measurement between the past and the future. Since we don’t know really what the future will hold, time is not a solid entity that we can grasp, but merely an idea. As a society, we tend not to recognize the importance of time and how it affects our daily lives. Because it is so difficult to attain a firm understanding of time, we frequently misuse it, fight against it, and end up wishing for more of it.
And maybe this begins in our education system. Many high school students, including myself, have been caught looking at the clock, waiting for a certain class to be over. According to the United States Department of Labor in 2013, we spend about 5.8 hours of our day at school. Yet, when we stare at the clock, we indicate that time should “fly by”. We are inadvertently wanting to waste time, and therefore, we do not truly understand the value of it. And once we waste time, we feel rushed. And evidence of us rushing is illustrated in the American Time Use study of 2014 which depicts that high school students who work spend only 2.9 hours per day socializing, relaxing and enjoying other forms of leisure. Nowadays, a typical high school student is cramming in as many clubs, volunteer opportunities, sports, and AP classes as they can to impress college admissions staff. Now don’t get me wrong, thinking about the future and getting into college is extremely important, but we need to realize that half-heartedly doing twelve activities is not as beneficial in terms of time use or as meaningful to us as fully being involved in five activities.
The misconception of time in American society may come through sayings like “time is money”. Many of us positively equate more time working to earning more money. However, people who work longer hours lose one of the most valuable gains: family time. When we equate time to materialistic objects, like money, we are really hindering potential relationships that we could build. Dr. Barbara Killinger writes in an article in the online edition of Psychology Today that workaholics often feel the pressure from their personal lives and their workplace and compromise their relationship with their spouse. This pressure is caused by a feeling for the lack of time. According to Marc Gozlan’s 2013 Guardian article, a neurotransmitter within the brain called dopamine is involved in how we process time. Certain compounds activate dopamine receptors, which speed up our perception of time, leading us to believe there is a lack of it. So the pressure to use one’s time effectively to earn money and to make every second count is, therefore, quantified and becomes the only way to, supposedly, use one’s time.
And even I’ve fallen into this “must use my time effectively” trap, and it’s cost me one of the dearest relationships I could have ever had. My Asoba, or grandfather, would sit me down and for hours on end and tell me stories of his childhood. But as I grew older, I didn't want to spend hours sitting & listening to him tell stories where I could rather be finishing my homework or practicing the piano. Now I just think how ignorant I was to even consider that my time was effectively spent elsewhere than spending time with someone who would teach about my culture, life lessons, or just taking the time to love me. When Asoba passed away six years ago, I realized I had lost the time to build memories and share precious moments with him.
So, how do we learn to appreciate time? Well, we need to effectively, but not necessarily efficiently, utilize our time by prioritizing our needs over our wants. We can do this by slowing down, relaxing a little, and becoming a society which incorporates mindfulness into our daily lives. As high school students, we should take AP classes that truly interest us, be in clubs that inspire us, and sports that exhilarate us. Even Jeff Brenzel, Dean of Undergraduate Admissions at Yale University, agrees that students should be involved in activities they truly enjoy and learn something from. As working professionals, schedule “meetings” for yourself -- go to the spa or read a book. As parents, set a goal to be there for every soccer game, every recital, every moment that matters. Work deadlines often can be pushed back, but kids only grow up once. If we are not aware of time and the value of time, we will unnecessarily waste precious time and lose opportunities to form memories and relationships along the way.
All in all, I’ve come to realize that maybe I do need to live in the moment and slow down, so I can truly appreciate the value of my time— of our time.