Two years. In childhood, two years is a lifetime. Think of the difference in second grade and fourth grade, seventh grade and ninth grade, tenth grade and twelfth grade. The growth spurts and coming of age in these years make the passage of time seem like infinity. School years are endless, along with summer vacations, although the school years seem to last twice as long.
In young adulthood, the time seems to move quicker but still, two years can make quite a difference. The decade between our twentieth and thirtieth birthdays seems to us like forever. Of all of my birthdays, the only one that really messed with my head was my thirtieth. I woke up on the morning before my birthday and it hit me like a ton of bricks. I thought, “Holy cow, I’m turning thirty tomorrow! How can I be turning thirty? I can’t be turning thirty. Thirty’s old!” I thought I was going to be in my twenties my whole life.
As time rolls on the days, weeks, months and years start to fly by. Our children grow up, graduate college, get married and start families of their own. We come to realize that time is the most valued commodity of all. We cannot get it back once it is gone. We may make a bad financial decision or have a monetary setback, but for the most part money can be recouped. Time is the one thing we can never get back. We may look to the past and see years that we consider wasted or misspent. Some claim to have no regrets and say that mistakes of the past are what made them into the person they are today. I can certainly see the validity in that, but as I look back there are certainly a number of things I would have done differently, given the opportunity of hindsight.
So, we press on. At this stage of life for my generation, we are attending more and more memorial services as our peers and parents depart. The years continue to move quickly, but we savor each passing day and try to make the most of the time we have left.
Two years ago seems like yesterday. Two years ahead seems like an eternity. The Good Lord willing, we will make it and still have the time to enjoy it.