YEAR-END REFLECTIONS:
HOW DID IT GET SO LATE SO SOON?
BY DR. NURIT ISRAELI
“How did it get so late so soon?
It’s night before it’s afternoon.
December is here before
it’s June.
My goodness how time has
flewn.
How did it get so late so soon?”
- Dr. Seuss
We are facing the end of
yet another year. Can
you believe it’s already
December? Where has the summer
gone? And fall? How did it get so
late so fast? How has a whole year
run its course so swiftly? It feels like
someone is pressing a fast-forward
button…
In a workshop I recently led at
North Shore Towers, as participants
reflected on their life stories, trying
to unravel the mysteries of the rapid
flight of time and get to the heart
of what really matters, there was
a clear consensus: Time tends to
speed up as we get older. We cannot
stop it, add to it, or retrieve it. We
cannot lose it either. It progresses
at its own pace, regardless of what
we do. In response to my question:
“What advice would you give your
younger self,” several participants
came up with nuggets of wisdom
relevant to their current selves
too: balance time wisely, embrace
newness, pursue meaning, don’t
squander your days, and be kinder
to yourself. Well, it’s (almost) never
too late to mend…
Before me, on my desk, lies a
filled-with-good-and-bad 2019
calendar. It was blank just eleven
months ago. Now I flip through
the pages, and the calendar tells
tales: birthdays and anniversaries,
holiday celebrations, work appointments,
submission deadlines,
theatre schedules, meetings with
friends, but also a heart attack, doctors’
visits, nights spent in hospitals,
tests, the sale of an apartment (our
Manhattan pied-à-terre)... A year
filled with joys and heartaches,
opportunities and challenges,
gains and losses, laughter and tears,
hopes and disappointments – a year
in a life. I am reminded of a line
in “Sunrise, Sunset,” my favorite
Fiddler on the Roof song: “One
season following another, laden
with happiness and tears.”
Our perception of the passage
of time has been a topic of multiple
studies and has been shown
to depend on a variety of factors.
“Real” time is objectively measured
by calendars and clocks. For all of
us, a year comprises 12 months,
most months comprise 30 days, a
day comprises 24 hours, an hour
comprises 60 minutes, and a minute
comprises 60 seconds. But, subjectively,
each person perceives time
differently, and for each of us the
perception of passing time changes
depending on circumstances:
Sometimes time flies, sometimes it
drags on, and sometimes it seems
to stand still (envision lying down
under an MRI machine…).
Particularly interesting is the consistent
finding that, for most of us,
time tends to speed up with age.
Proportional theory seems to be the
best explanation. The perception of
time is relative: a year in the lifespan
of a five-year-old is 20% of his/her
life, while in the life of a 50-yearold,
it is only 2%.
Though we can’t slow down the
passage of time, we can make time
feel longer. Injecting novelty – doing
things that are new and demand our
attention – is known to extend our
sense of time (memorable trips and
other peak experiences are recalled
as having lasted much longer than
they actually did). At any age, we
can plan new “firsts”, big or small,
and time is likely to slow down.
David Eagleman, a neuroscientist
who studies time perception, concludes
that “brain time,” which is
intrinsically subjective, is “a rubbery
thing” that “stretches out when you
turn your brain resources on.” To
deal with the time-flying problem,
we need to invite new or interesting
experiences into our lives, accept
challenges, learn new things, meet
new people. Additionally, we need
to notice more, become more mindful.
The more engaged we are with
any experience, the longer it seems
to last. Mindfulness – focused attention
on the Here-and- Now – helps
our brain store more information
and helps us feel that time is passing
more slowly. It is like pressing
a slow-motion button and noticing
more attentively both ourselves and
the world around us.
We are now entering the last
month of the year. 2019 is on her
way out. Let’s get ready to part from
her. Let’s try to identify the good
that came with her: any experiences
that inspired us, goals attained, lessons
learned, missteps dealt with,
obstacles overcome, skills acquired,
fun savored… Let’s try to forgive
her for any hardships she placed
in our way…
Can you try to describe the outgoing
2019 in a single word? Is this
a word you would have chosen in
the beginning of the year? Some
responses I got to this challenge:
Demanding. Difficult. Exciting.
Serene. Harmonious. Confusing.
Stimulating. Mixed Bag. Well, 2020
will soon give us a chance to come
up with new words to set the tone
for the year ahead, step into it with
intention and a clear focus.
One of the most memorable
scenes in Fiddler on the Roof
depicts Tevye leading a toast to
life, joyfully singing with the others
“To Life, To Life, L’chaim” during
20 NORTH SHORE TOWERS COURIER ¢ December 2019