We live in an era where everything is fast and furious – food service, internet connection, escalator speed. We are all
also expected to eat faster,
move faster and respond to messages sooner.
Fast cars are a different story, of course – we love them for a myriad other reasons than because they can get us to our destinations in less time.
When we need to take a break from everyday life at breakneck speed, we have a getaway. When you’re on holiday and not rushing to meet deadlines, time takes on a whole new meaning.
It is no longer about accomplishing as much as possible in a day (or maybe it still is, with all that shopping, sightseeing and dining to do).
When you’re not battling time and timetables, magic happens. The world becomes a much nicer place – people are friendlier, things go your way and you feel like Mary Poppins, with a spring in your step.
I experienced my extended Mary Poppins moment recently when I went on an eight-day cruise. I last went on one more than 10 years ago, so I had almost forgotten what it is like to go on a sailing vacation.
To quote Van Morrison’s song “Into The Mystic”, “smell the sea and feel the sky, let your soul and spirit fly”.
I read my way through four books, drank my way through eight cups of tea a day and chomped my way in body weight over six daily meals.
And when I had watched all the shows, played all the arcade games and slot machines, and tried all the activities available on board, it was time to lay back and just gaze at the sea for hours on end. Doing nothing became an activity in itself.
When commercial air travel became a popular mode of transport, people raved about how quickly they could get from place to place compared to travelling by car, train or ship.
Air travel in the past was expensive, but it was a matter of paying more money to get to your destination more quickly.
Today, we crave the reverse. A cruise ticket costs several times more than an air ticket and the cruise liner takes ages to get you to your destination, but the luxury of time is what it is all about.
From paying more to save time, we now pay more to savour time. But whether or not you have the luxury of time, one thing is for sure – you still need the luxury of money to buy time
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