Time after time

Throughout human history there have been sacred items that civilizations have sought, treasures they have craved. Wars have been fought over these items, countries ravaged, people slain; all in the pursuit of mystical items such as The Ten Commandments, the Holy Grail, and the Book of the Dead.

People have also sought that which should not exist, the stuff of legend, living only in myth; Bigfoot, the Loch Ness Monster, Santa Claus, the woman who likes test cricket, an Australian not fond of vegemite.

I have been on my own quest, searching for something without a face, the composition I am not entirely certain of, but which all people know exists and influences the lives of every person on Earth.

I am in search of ‘Time’.

All my life I have heard of this mysterious enigma but never known what or who it was referring to. After some preliminary research I have ascertained the following:

Time is something that a number of us do not have enough of. Often I have heard “I’d love to, but I’m out of time” or “Not enough time today” and wondered how do you get more? Will I wake up with a fresh batch tomorrow morning? Is it something the cat may bring in and toss at my feet?

Time must be a tangible substance, probably similar to ink or glue. Hence why you hear that Joe Bloggs has “Too much time on his hands”. Poor guy. That stuff is hard to get out.

You may be able to create more time in your own backyard – if only you could build your own ‘Time machine’.

Time is also something that is easily misplaced. ‘Can’t find the time’, ‘where did the time go?’ Slippery little character this ‘Time’. Evasive.

Maybe Time has fled the country, gone on holiday – this must be what people mean when they refer to ‘Time travel’. He probably got there on his own steam as “Time flies”; seemingly even more so when you’re having fun.

When you arrive at your friends house, huffing and puffing, gasping for every last breath, very late and are greeted with “It’s about time”, does that mean you have someone or something to blame for your tardiness? Bravo.

There is a link between Time and human existence though. A planet must have a human population, not just plant life, insects and dinosaurs; otherwise it is referred to as “the land that time forgot”. Did he forget to put humans on there? Bit of an oversight. Oops.

It seems that Time is a worthy adversary, one which can both assist us and threaten our very existence. You need to be quick to get a piece of Time’s action. There is no room for error; you cannot miss your opportunity…especially if you are male as we all know that “Time waits for no man.”

If that is the case I think I’ll get my sister or girlfriend to continue the search as I ponder just what “A stitch in time saves nine” refers to? Beats me. One for Google or Wikipedia I think.