or: The Speed of Time

Various studies have shown that as we age, our perception of the pace of time passing increases. Yoiu may remember this yourself from the length of time it seemed to take to reach any special occasion when you were younger to how quickly your birthday (or even the same special occasion) seems to roll around now.

What I find particular interesting though is how time can seem simultaneously fast and slow depending on how youm choose to look at it.

I have now been in Mauritius again for about three weeks. These have gone by quickly. And slowly.

If I even consider today, it has been both fast and slow.

Today I was awake around 6.30am and had a freshly ground cup of coffee and some freshly squeezed orange and lemon juice. The same as I do most days here when I’m not having freshly made fruit salad with yoghurt instead. The rest of my morning followed the usual routine until I reached the dive centre.

Once there, I put on roughly fifty layers of neoprene (that’s only a slight exaggeration… I feel the cold in the water at this time of year and it’s also true that others are still out in the ocean in their 3mm shorties) and prepared to help others learn how to dive.

This is also about the same as my usual day.

I then dived three times. This is one more than usual however one was quite short. It felt like two dives. When I am underwater, time stands still. I am watching whoever it is I’m diving with (if they are a beginner) or I am watching the fish. Sometimes the coral too though I still prefer the fish. If I’m with a more experienced diver, then I’m still watching them too though not quite as closely.

Today I was watching my dive buddies like a hen watches its chicks. Possibly because my dive buddies varied between a ten year old and a mother of two who went diving with her daughters for the first time. I had a ball. They seemed to enjoy themselves too since they are both looking at coming to dive again over the following week.

I was back at the dive centre by 3pm. This is late compared to usual. It didn’t feel it. The only real indicator was the noise my stomach was making and it normally makes similar noises after a couple of dives.

I ate lunch. Same as usual.

My difference was showering and changing out of my wetsuit after eating since I couldn’t wait for food too much longer and the shower wasn’t going anywhere.

I then showered. These were in the opposite order to usual.

I came home and napped. Same as usual.

I’m now writing. It’s Sunday so this is the same as usual. I was doing the same thing last Sunday. And the Sunday before that.

Next I’ll eat, maybe do some work, then chat or go out with some friends (this is where my plan tends to vary) and then come back and sleep. I am always tired by the time I go to bed in the evening.

Reading always fits in there somewhere too.

Repeat.

It is awesome.

Each day goes quickly and of course there is some variation along the way though the  core remains the same. When I look back to the morning, it seems ages ago. When I look back to when I last wrote a post, it seems recent.

Tomorrow seems both near and far.

It will be awesome too.

* Thanks to Charles Strouse and Martin Charnin for the title to this post. To see the clip from the musical Annie, click here.