Those Little Golden Moments

To the reader and the listener and  those in between,

I have no spare time.  No, I am not particularly busy, nor is my schedule particularly full.  But I do not, and never have had, and never intend to have, any spare time.

All of my moments serve a purpose.  There is not one to spare. 

Growing up, I had a book with a collection of Victorian-era moral stories; books where Johnny learns the hard way not to lie to Father, and a Girl has to give up vain pursuits in exchange for character-building ones. 

This was one of my favorite books.  I am not sure why; maybe because it had fascinating turn-of-the-century illustrations, or maybe because it was always intruiging to read about terrible children getting in trouble.  I do not remember many the stories now, but there was one story in there that I remember quite well, and it made a significant impact on me. 

It was a story about a young man who approaches a possible future employer, who peruses his résumé and comments on the extraordinary amount of accomplishments the young man possesses.  The lad, energetic and earnest as they are wont to be in these stories, explains how he has acquired these many accomplishments by making good use of what he calls those little, those precious, those "golden" moments.  As I recall, he finishes his story something like this: "You see, sir, I don't have any spare time, because any time I have is made use of in those little golden moments.  Foreign languages, studious reading, physical pursuits, were all accomplished in Those Little Golden Moments."

This story galvanized me, and hardly a day goes by when I don't consider the principle therein.  That is why I have no spare, wasted time any more.  If I don't know what to do with myself in any given moment, I can do pushups to get stronger, read my Italian books to get smarter, study the Scriptures to grow wiser, and not waste time dinking around foolish websites or watching endless, pointless movies.  There is a time and a place for fun, relaxing things, but only in prudent moderation - and when I participate in something fun, relaxing, and mind-numblingly uneducational, I enter into it with the understanding that this is a temporary, controlled activity with the purpose of resting, recharging, or building fellowship with those around me. 

And so, this long period of living in a hotel with no real demands (no work, school, family appointments, church activities) on my schedule has been, instead of a wallowing period, a very precious period of personal physical, spiritual, and mental growth, with lots of time spent engaging in study, meditation, exercise, and developing relationships with valued new friends!

If it weren't for the Principle of the Golden Moments, I would be the laziest sloth you ever did meet, for it would be all to easy to lie a-bed all day and snack on bon-bons. 

Pondering if eating cinnamon rolls is an educational activity,

Mrs H
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"A falsely free man is free to do as he pleases.  A truly free man is free to do as he must." (random quote I once heard from Dave Ramsey)