In the second grade, my teacher told us to write down as many words as we possibly could in only two minutes. Naturally, being focused on the task, and admittedly on winning, the time flew by. She then had us close our eyes and sit still for another two minutes. This time, the impossible slowness of time made me nearly want to jump out of my seat. Although it was all objectively the same four minutes, I had experienced two completely different subjective lengths of time. Twelve years later, I find myself experiencing something rather similar. Every Tuesday morning, I bike to Carleton from Byward Market which takes roughly thirty-five minutes. On Thursdays, I often take the bus to school which also takes roughly thirty-five minutes. Like furiously writing down words in the second grade, the bike ride is fast and effortless. And unfortunately, like sitting with my eyes closed, the bus ride seems to consume eons of my precious time. Despite time’s objectivity, it is clear that only one’s subjective experience of it truly matters. Your perception is your reality, and thus who cares if that bus trip was only thirty-five minutes if its anxiety-inducing ride felt like hours? And who is to say that you have to settle down if it saves you from a life of slow-paced monotony? Even if we all live the same eighty years on this Earth, the most worthwhile parts will have felt like mere seconds. It seems to be that time really does fly by when you are having fun.
