by D. Gerard Cassidy

Created on: November 25, 2009

When we're young, waiting a whole year for our next birthday, or the holiday season or summer vacation to come around is excruciating. Then, some time around our late twenties or early thirties, we notice the year doesn't take as long to pass. Then, when we pass forty and on into our fifties, the calendar kicks into fast-forward, and each passing year seems to happen quickly.

Since we can assume that the earth hasn't accelerated in its path around the sun, there must be some other explanation for this universal sensation. There is, and the answer is not in the impatient minds pf children or the wisdom of the elderly. The answer lies in our perception of self and our perception of time.

When we are 10 years old, the passing of the next year takes one-tenth of our entire life. Since those 365 days comprise such a large portion of the whole, the perception to a 10-year-old is that the year takes a log time. Of course it does! Since it is a full one-tenth of his or her lifetime, it IS a long time. The self looks at all experience and sees one year as a relatively significant part of the whole.

When we are 60 years old, those 12 pages of the calendar take up a much smaller portion of our entire experience. The year is only one-sixtieth of your lifetime. To the self, one year is a relatively small portion of the total sum of experience, and such a small portion of the whole goes by swiftly.

The two experiences can't be compared. Just as each person each self is unique, so too is each person's perception of time. We all see time through the lenses of our own lives. How else could we see it? When looking at years, one-tenth of 10 and one-sixtieth of 60 are both one year, but in the perception of the ten year old, one year is a much larger portion of the whole than the 365 days out of 21,900 days the 60-year old experiences.

Is there a way to beat this? Is it possible for the 60-year-old to slow the clock and make each year crawl like a 10-year-old's summer? In reality, no. In practice, most definitely yes. There are several ways to stretch your perception of time.

Our perception of time is also influenced by what happens during that time. Unpleasant tasks seem to take forever, while things we anticipate and participate in with pleasure are over all too soon. So, you could fill your life with unpleasant tasks. That would surely make the days crawl.

When we are bored, time seems to all but stop. So, you could just sit and stare at the clock for the rest of your life. The rest of your life would seem like eternity.

The more positive and healthy way to make the days, weeks and months seem to go on forever is to fill them up now and into the future. There is a paradox that a full day can seem to both fly by, while a day where a lot is accomplished can also be perceived to elongate in time. Even more important, a future filled with many exciting and interesting plans can expand the perception of time. With so much happening and so much planned, our perception of time expands to fill the mind's perception of what has or will happen during that time.

A lifetime filled with new challenges new experiences new knowledge new people is a life that will go on and on.

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