Take your (socially constructed) time.
Due to our country’s most recent events, I’ve been considerably more aware of time (specifically what feels like the lack thereof).
March feels like three months ago, not five. A month ago feels like two weeks ago. And two weeks ago feels like two days ago. Obviously, it’s been hard for me to stay present. I recently learned that the measuring of time has been up for debate since the 17th century, and with how quickly my days are going by—I really think those “time is a construct” memes are onto something.
Since March, Facebook, Netflix and YouTube have all seen spikes in traffic and there was a total of 9 billion more minutes spent on social media during our time in isolation. We have more time on our hands to consume the media we’d otherwise be too busy for, since we’re desperate to connect with people in any capacity. We have more time to tend to the things we’ve never had time for...and on the flip side—we have more time to feel unproductive. While other cultures differ—the U.S. is a more punctually-conscious, future-oriented country with a culture that emphasizes keeping busy at all times. So when we’re not on-the-go—it causes some mental commotion. Because “time is normally money.” Time also flies when you’re having fun, but I’m beginning to think that time flies in the midst of very odd situations, too.
There are countless amounts of articles on how to use your time during quarantine and the question of “What have you been doing during quarantine?” is, like, everyone’s favorite thing to ask when catching up on a Zoom happy hour. Some might think that you should be using every single minute wisely. So do...or don’t. Because time is just something we psychologically use to measure our productivity. So here’s your reminder to let go of time, go with the flow, take care of yourself and be patient as you adapt. Let’s slow down and take our time.
(And binge-watch early 2000s trash TV.)