Months to Days, Days to Hours, Hours to Minutes...to Moments

It amazes me how this thing call time, this business only measured by man, moves forward. I think God doesn't measure by time because I think he measures by moments instead. Recently I've been feeling the significance of moments  more acutely.  A hymn I love echoes my feelings well: 

Time flies on wings of lightning;

We cannot call it back.

It comes, then passes forward

Along its onward track.

And if we are not mindful,

The chance will fade away,

For life is quick in passing.

’Tis as a single day.

Improve the Shining Moments #226

Sometimes in life I can't wait for things to go more quickly: a cold winter, end of school, start of a new experience. But there's something about the here and now, the moments that are happening right now and their incredible orchestration and temporary-ness that strikes me lately as being vital not to miss. I guess in part it comes from having so many changes, or perhaps time crunches. To give a small window into why this is so present with me let me describe the past few days. I'm leaving town soon. I decided to spend the night yesterday at my sister's house to enjoy my nieces and nephews before I leave. Practically on the way out the door I learned it was my Sister in Laws birthday and they were eating at a restaurant for dinner right then. I almost just went straight to my sister's house but decided to go with my full stomach and stop in to say hello at their food table. There was my mom and family sitting down to eat in a very routine, ordinary way, but to me it was priceless because I won't get to be part of that for awhile. This morning, after a great time with my sister I found out my mother had been admitted to the hospital today. I went to see her. She's quickly improving and will be alright though it was an unexpected jolt on the system. At one point I had to go stand  in the sparkly sterile hall while the nurse was helping my mom. A  man with teary eyes walked out of the room next door. He came up to me and said, "It's a hard thing to see your brother die. All the memories and times together..." He only had a short time to live. The only thing I could think of to say was "it sounds like you lived to the fullest and took advantage of the moments you had." I went back into my mom's room where we sang songs and had a good laugh. Each moment is sooo precious. Opportunities don't last forever.  Live each moment fully because its the moments that make life full.