A Valued-Time Culture
"It is too bad we are born in to a culture that places such an extrodinarily high value on time."
This is the thought that I stumbled across today. We live in a culture with powerful tools to communicate across long distance with little or no time delay. Its funny, our technology has allowed us to reduce time needed to communicate with one another, but at the same time is has accelerated our cultures view time to point where using these technology can be burdensome because of the time required to use them.
I guess I speak for myself here. I often think to myself, "I should write so-and-so an e-mail" but than often decide not to because of the time required to do so. I can't be bothered to spend the time! I don't like this and it is something that I am trying to reconcile in my life. Spending time communicating is something well worth it. The demand on everyone's time is large but I guess in the end it is where you place the value of the time you spend that determines what you do with it.
So I guess for me, the drive toward communicating more with the people around me is changing the how I value my time. The question that really interests me is how does the average person value their time? What do they want to spend more time on? What is most valued.
This is the thought that I stumbled across today. We live in a culture with powerful tools to communicate across long distance with little or no time delay. Its funny, our technology has allowed us to reduce time needed to communicate with one another, but at the same time is has accelerated our cultures view time to point where using these technology can be burdensome because of the time required to use them.
I guess I speak for myself here. I often think to myself, "I should write so-and-so an e-mail" but than often decide not to because of the time required to do so. I can't be bothered to spend the time! I don't like this and it is something that I am trying to reconcile in my life. Spending time communicating is something well worth it. The demand on everyone's time is large but I guess in the end it is where you place the value of the time you spend that determines what you do with it.
So I guess for me, the drive toward communicating more with the people around me is changing the how I value my time. The question that really interests me is how does the average person value their time? What do they want to spend more time on? What is most valued.
posted by michael at 11:47 AM
2 Comments:
it's hard to draw the line between things like school assignments and having a job, and spending quality time building relationships, encouraging one another, etc...
while relationships (with people AND with God!) are more important, it sometimes seems more practical to get things like school, degree, job, dealt with first...because these things are 'less forgiving' and 'won't reschedule' for you----this is the time of your life where you get a university degree! find a job! otherwise you'll be stuck in a cardboard box in the street!
yet i'd rather be a bum on the street with lots of friends than a phd all alone. yet in our culture that's unacceptable...:D
so the social events that once were included haphazardly and hesitantly are now a focal point of my life---still working on treating my God-time as equally or more central! aaaaand education? who needs that.
Michael writes: "spending time comunicating is something well woth it...it is where you place the value of time you spend that determines what you do with it". This comment struck me as a challenge - where do I place my communication with God in the value spectrum. I have time to chat on the phone (even for an hour at a time), I have time to email friends (sometimes :), I have time to communicate with my books and even tv but when it comes to devoting time to communicate with God through prayer or reading his word "I am too busy". Communication with others is important. Communication with God is critical - in fact from the relationship you create with him flows how you relate to all the others. When the veritcal (to God) is in place, the horizontal (to mankind) will follow.
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