Free time

We do not seem to value anything that comes to us free. Just look at the conditions of our railway platforms, bus stands, roads, public parks, public libraries and post offices...

We do not seem to value anything that comes to us free. Just look at the conditions of our railway platforms, bus stands, roads, public parks, public libraries and post offices; we even pollute the free air we breathe. But, perhaps, our biggest failing is the way we use time. Time is free but precious. We can8217;t own it but we can use it. Once we have lost it, we can never get it back.

Recently I was taking an inventory of how I spend my time. The findings shattered me. I had the perception that I was in charge of my own time but discovered that this was not the case at all. To start with, a number of mundane things take up our time. The cook is late, the bus breaks down, there is a big traffic jam caused by a morcha. All of this happens without warning.

Over the week, my wife accumulates work to be done on a Saturday. It would seem that everyone in the city buys provisions on Saturdays. What should have taken me some 20 minutes takes over an hour. When I arrived at my bank8217;s counter, it was closed. That left me with very little money over the weekend, which turned out to be stressful. This is why most people I know bank on weekdays and join a 60-minute queue. My work gets disrupted and I am left with another day of incomplete work. Then there is the ritual of two tea-breaks a day.They are unofficial but it allows the staff to exchange views on subjects that has nothing to do with work. It is meant to relax people in order to make them more productive. If a family has four or five members, someone or the other is bound to fall ill. And doctors seem to prefer seeing patients on weekdays.This could take up a few hours. I also have to travel on work 8212; sometimes by train or by plane. I remain unsure of their arrival. I cannot plan my day before I reach. Thus the people waiting to work with me are unable to plan their day either.

I ask myself, are we careless with our time because it comes to us free? Would we be less careless if we were paid by the hour of work?