Minor Epiphanies 1.3

On trying to wrangle time

On Sunday, I ventured to meet my friend in New Braunfels. Instead of taking the interstate, I chose the longer ninety-minute route that snaked through Texas Hill Country. Live oaks, cacti, and giant ranches lined the roads, and I found myself getting lost in the scenery, my playlist, and in the moment.

While driving, I thought of Krista Tippet’s interview with John O’Donohue. He had reflected, “​​What amazes me about landscape, landscape recalls you into a mindful mode of stillness, solitude, and silence, where you can truly receive time. . . . And I think when you slow it down, then you find your rhythm. And when you come into rhythm, then you come into a different kind of time.” Time did seem to slow and stretch. I entered a kind of meditative trance where I wasn’t concentrating on any particular thought or activity. 

After my friend and I enjoyed a long and delicious lunch and wandered through an antique shop, I began my drive home. By this point, I was tired and had a little headache, and I wasn’t looking forward to grocery shopping or preparing for the week ahead. I turned on my playlist and took the same roads home. The same live oaks, cacti, and giant ranches surrounded me — just in reverse order. But I couldn’t get lost in the landscape. Instead of wondering what I would see around the next bend, I ticked off each turn as being closer to home. 

I told myself to enjoy the drive. I willed myself to savor the moment and to soak it all in. After all, lazy Sundays are a luxury, and work, household chores, future children, and other obligations eventually do/will get in the way. But savoring and getting lost in the moment can’t be forced. The rhythm, which O’Donohue eloquently references, needs to unfold on its own, and it seems to do this best when we’re not thinking about it.

Overall, I find this to be quite an irritating paradox. However, it’s also beautiful because those moments of finding our rhythm can come at startling and unexpected times — like during a random Sunday morning drive.

This Minor Epiphany recommends:

A glorious playlist, created by my friend Maddie

Podcast ep: “John O’Donohue — The Inner Landscape of Beauty.” On Being with Krista Tippett (this episode will transform you!)