Reflections on Life and Faith,
by David Keating

Always in a Hurry

March 24, 2007

      Why are we always in such a hurry? Years ago I worked with a fella who had a sign over his workbench that said "the hurrier I go, the behinder I get." And who hasn't seen the office coffee mug emblazoned with "If you haven't got time to do it right, when are you going to find time to do it over?" The drawbacks to rushing around would seem to be so obvious that we've turned them into clichés. And yet we still rush around.

     I'm just as susceptible to this as anyone. One night a week, I try to set aside other obligations and indulge my science fiction habit by watching a string of television shows. Usually this is a pretty good diversion. Not exactly meditation, just an opportunity to escape the "real world" without going anywhere. No concentration required.

     This week however, I couldn't seem to relax. I found myself questioning why I was playing couch potato. Weren't there other things to be done? I had an upcoming presentation on the Golden Rule that wasn't finished yet. Shouldn't I be doing that instead of wasting time just sitting here watching imaginary lasers and aliens and people dodging bullets at super speed? My mind didn't seem to want to gear down.

     I was thinking about that today while looking out the window. After a few nice days the weather has turned a bit dreary and cold. I found myself wishing that spring would just get on with it. A feeling echoed by my neighbours as we chatted in the elevator. And speaking of elevators I think that one day I shall write a column on the spirituality of riding in a little box for about thirty seconds and how that influences the way in which we get to know people who may live only a few steps away. But that's a story for another time.

     We seem to be in a perpetual rush, always, as a colleague once said, apologizing for leaving one place early so that we can apologize for arriving someplace else late.

     Centuries ago, there were those who used to lock themselves in monasteries to get away from the distractions of the bustling world so that they could focus on their faith. And that world traveled by ox cart! Why the recklessness of it boggles the mind. Whatever would they do on a four lane downtown street, let alone a superhighway? I guess the definition of bustling is relative.

     I am indeed looking forward to spring. I like the smell of newly turned earth, to watch little buds turn into maple leaves or tiny seeds into petunias.

     But those things take time, the last two at least, and I think that perhaps we could take yet another lesson from nature and learn a little patience.

     We have become accustomed to speeding things up. We increase the speed limit, and drive above it anyway. We have permanently pressed clothes so that we don't need to spend time ironing. We have microwave ovens so that our food can go from frozen to burnt in less time than it used to take us to stick noodles to the bottom of a pan. We have even had some success in speeding up nature.

     But in spite of it all, those buds still take time to open, those seeds still take time to sprout.

     And taking the time to drink in the sight of them still connects my soul to God.

     The gospels report that Jesus frequently took time to step aside from the world and pray, to commune with the Creator and Creation.

     In this hurly burly place, that seems like a good idea to me.

David Keating