“Time expands and contracts all within the stirring of the heart”- Haruki Murakami
When we were younger, the summer felt like a whole lifetime had passed. We had different experiences, and new friends, and went on grand adventures. However, when we get older, we may sometimes feel like the year has passed by so quickly, or we can hardly remember what we did last week. Life seems like it is whizzing by, and we may feel like we do not have any time or create any new memories.
One of the reasons for this is that the older we get, the less we savor. And the less we savor and linger, the faster time seems to pass by. When we were young, licking an ice cream cone with our favorite flavor seemed like an eternity. We felt like we could slow time down, one slow lick at a time.
As adults, we feel that time elapsed slowly in their childhood days but then speeds up later in life. And, science is now proving that it has to do with our perception, memory, and the passage of time. Time is nothing but our collective experience of memories or remembered time.
We can’t slow downtime, but we can definitely change our perception of time, actually enhance our experience of it, and create more lasting memories of the time past.
Here are a few simple and easy ways to enhance our experience of time and create a more positive life experience:
1. Create new and novel experiences to engage our brains.
“New environments and experiences create new backgrounds for your dreams.”
― Silvie Mateljan
This helps to create and leave new lasting impressions on our memories. We gauge our time by novelty and the new experiences that we have. When we grow older, we start having fewer new experiences. We stop seeking and trying new things. We tend to develop daily routines and habits, so that each day, each week, and perhaps each month starts to feel the same. Adding one new thing to our day, whether it is eating at a different place, or taking a different route to work, creates a simple break in the system of time, and creates a new memory timeline.
Introducing newness and novelty into your life when you can make the memories stand out and expand time.
2. Slow down and move at a relaxed pace.
“I spent a lifetime in a garden one afternoon.”
― Craig D. Lounsbrough
This helps to bring our focus and engage more deeply with the present moment. This helps to create a holistic mind-body experience, taps into our experience of time and creates a more meaningful memory. Start small and take one moment a day, whether it is looking out the window or having a cup of tea and try to bring our total awareness of our mind, body, and emotions to the present activity or experience.
3. Savor and linger in our experiences.
“Kisses happen, when my morning blueberry muffin sails slowly upon my savoring tongue.”
― Sanober Khan, A touch, a tear, a tempest.
Using our senses of sight, smell, and sound, we can savor and linger on the micro-experience bringing more depth to the moment. This helps to tap into our emotions of awe and marvel and creates a deeper sense of connection with ourselves, nature and others. So, try smelling the flowers when we pass a flower shop, or the fragrance of freshly baked bread, or looking at the ray of sunlight streaming through the window next time, you pass by.
4. Storytelling helps to create long-lasting memories and deeper connections.
“I’m writing my story so that others might see fragments of themselves.”
― Lena Waithe, screenwriter for Bones and Master.
Think, reflect, remember, reminisce, journal about your savoring moments in the day, and share them with loved ones. This shared experience helps to engrain the memory into our timeline.
Hope this is helpful in your Shine Journey to be inspired, learn, grow, get better and shine a little brighter, not just in our own lives, but in our families and the world around us, in small, simple, and easy ways.
Remember, Shine starts with small, and if sustained daily, becomes significant over time.
Shine on, and wishing you the best to inspire and help others shine as well!
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