Editor's Column by Carolyn Stent The more we struggle to control time, the more it controls us.

Back to Table of Contents | Back to Main Index Previous Editor's Columns | Send mail to The Voice Student longs to let go of time "Let's make time to get together," I often say. If I knew the recipe for making time, I would be a millionaire. The verbs we use with time reflect American society's view of time. We set aside, make, take, schedule, spend, save and even kill time. A friend recently told me that two years ago she acquired a book on how to manage one's time but has not had enough time to finish it. Meanwhile, time passes regardless of our plans and purposes. The more we struggle to control time, the more it controls us. Perhaps I've noticed this because my task-oriented personality continually clashes with my desire to relax and enjoy life. I always identify with Martha in Luke chapter 10. I scold myself for not being more like her sister Mary, who sat at Jesus' feet and listened while Martha worked around them. When preparing a resume during my senior year in high school, I struggled to list my achievements. One of my classmates said, "You should have plenty of things to list. You are always rushing around." I cringe whenever I remember his words. Four years later, I still wake up each morning with a to-do list. I have to schedule time to talk with my friends. I can't fit everything in the small squares of my daily planner. I run from appointment to appointment. My sister calls just as I'm leaving the house, and I have to cut the conversation short--again. When I finally climb into bed at night, I scold myself for what I didn't accomplish and mentally form a new to-do list for the next day. I grew up in a culture that does not share the understanding of time we have in the United States. In Pakistan, where my parents were missionaries, my family adopted some of the habits practiced in that culture. For instance, we often stopped to chat over a cup of tea with our neighbors. Although we maintained some of the American attitude toward time, we accepted and even enjoyed some aspects of the lifestyle the people around us practiced. In every town and village, old, bearded men sat on woven beds or on rickety benches by the side of the street, talking with friends or watching the world around them. Storekeepers paused to recite prayers to Allah or to offer a customer a cup of sweet, milky chai. When we received a gilt-edged wedding invitation for a 1 p.m. service, we understood that the ceremonies might not begin until 3 p.m. At 1 p.m. we may have thought about what clothes we would wear to the wedding. Although the pastor announced that the Easter service would begin at 9 a.m., people began arriving at that time. People continued arriving for the next half an hour. When the repairman promised to fix our appliance within an hour, we didn't rush back to pick it up. In the month of Ramazan, when Muslims fast during the day and eat at night, we knew few projects would be completed on time, if at all. Pakistan's relaxed attitude toward time has its problems. It grows out of a fatalistic worldview in which people believe they have no control over their environment or events. The people of Pakistan do not enjoy the wealth and high standard of life that we do in the United States of America. However, their attitude recognizes that time refuses to be grasped. Instead of wearing themselves out, the people I saw around me accepted and lived within time. I am still searching for a balanced understanding of time. When I find it, perhaps I'll write a book. But then, I might not have time to write it, and you probably will not have time to read it. Back to Table of Contents | Back to Main Index Previous Editor's Columns | Top Of Page Send mail to The Voice| Journalism department website © 2001 The Voice. No part of this publication may be reproduced in written or electronic form without prior written consent from the journalism adviser of Multnomah Bible College. All rights reserved.