The title of my blog is a key theme (and quote) used throughout my favorite novel, The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffeneger. It is originally from the poem To His Coy Mistress by Andrew Marvell.
This quote really resonated with me because since I was a child, I felt that time was running through my fingertips. I remember crying because, and i quote, 'I was getting older and time was going by too fast.' I know, aren't most children just worried about when dinner is? But I've had to deal with this fear of time from a young age. In the Time Traveler's Wife, all they do is deal with time; how it plays tricks on us, how it helps/hinders us, and how literally the fact that a man falls out of time, is both horrid and incredible. During the novel, he always toasted 'to world enough and time,' which I believe is the main point of the book: whilst he can't control where/when he is in time, he still gives an expression of honor towards the world and the time in it. No matter what we'd like to believe, our world and the time in it is not controlled directly by us, and all we can do is give a nod and smile in it's direction and keep on living like it is.
This quote hit home with me in many ways, but continues to remind me that I can't control time, but I can control what I do with it. Time will continue to slip away, but I've been given this wonderful gift of world enough and time, and I need to take advantage of it.
I know this book won't be everyone's cup of tea (how could it be?), but I hold it so dear to my heart, so if you decide to read it (which I recommend that you do), just do me a favor and tell me you loved it ;)
“Time is priceless, but it’s Free. You can't own it, you can use it. You can spend it. But you can't keep it. Once you've lost it you can never get it back.” - Audrey Niffeneger