Why does time seem to stand still or move too fast?
“Time flies”, goes an old saying, which is derived from the Latin words tempus fugit. Frequently, it seems that there is a great deal of truth in the old saying.
A modern extension of the old saying is: “Doesn’t time fly when you’re having fun!” Literally, this means that when you are enjoying yourself, time seems to go extremely quickly. For example, when someone is on his two-week annual holiday, he feels that time passes much more quickly than it does when he is at work.
This saying, however, is also used ironically. Someone might say: “Doesn’t time fly when you’re having fun!” when he means the very opposite. He might mean that time actually seems to be crawling along because he is in a very boring situation. For example, he might use the phrase when the train on which he is travelling has ground to a halt for some reason and has been stationary for some time.
Time moves along at the same pace, whatever the situation. There are sixty seconds in every minute, sixty minutes in every hour, seven days in every week and twelve months in every year. That time seems to move faster or slower is purely a matter of personal perception, depending on the circumstances.
For example, students whose examinations are due to take place in the course of the next few weeks are likely to think that time is moving far too fast. They have so much studying to get done before the examinations and, seemingly, so little time to finish it. Indeed, time seems to flash past, making the students feel panic-stricken.
Similarly, if someone, particularly a woman, is getting married in the near future, time can seem as though it is rushing past. There are so many arrangements to make for the big day and there does not seem to be nearly enough time to carry these out.
On the other hand, if someone has been separated from a loved one for a period of time, it can feel as though time is standing still, or at least moving very slowly indeed. The person misses the loved one so much that each day can seem like a week.
Similarly, if a person is looking forward very much to some event that is to take place in the future, time can drag. For example, you may have booked an exotic summer holiday during one of the winter months. The holiday is still quite a long time away. but it can seem even further away as you suffer from cold weather and long to be lying on a sunny beach.
Age can also be a factor in people’s perception of the passage of time. As people get older, they usually say that time seems to accelerate. It is as though the years pick up speed as people get closer to the end of their lives.
Children, however, often think that time seems to go very slowly. This is especially true when they are looking forward to something.
For many of us Christmas, with all the preparations that have to be made for it, usually comes round all too quickly. However, for children the time between them first hearing Christmas mentioned and it actually happening seems like years.
For some of us, time will seem to drag past, while for others it will seem to fly past. Meanwhile, time will continue to proceed at its own regular pace.
