peaches and time

Where does time go? Why do the days disappear? I saw an explanation on TV, where else? It said that when our brains experience something new, our neurons are firing and lots is going on in our systems, so as we process it all, things seem to take a long time. That's how life feels when we're young - when everything is new.

And then we get older. We've done it all before. No neurons are firing. And so time seems to vanish, because nothing is slowing it down.

Makes sense, no?

This beautiful Saturday vanished. I'd done it all before. No, that's not true, let's slow down this narrative. When I got to the market on my bike, there was my dear friend and handyman John, sitting outside waiting for his wife to finish shopping. John spent yesterday morning lying on my bathroom floor with his head under the sink, replacing the faucet. Yes, another of the only things that didn't get renovated during the winter broke. Thank God for John. I sat with him awhile and watched the market goers. "There's peaches for the first time today," John told me, "and corn for the second week." I bought both. The first peach of the year! Took a long time to enjoy it properly. Neurons were firing.

Later I submitted my manuscript to a publisher; hadn't done it exactly that way before, so that was new. Made various arrangements for various social events and gatherings and a road trip, new but not really, have done it all before. Thus, my afternoon flew out the window.

I pruned my raspberry bushes, also something I'd not done before. I've been worrying they're not fruiting as they should, so went online and saw what to  do - prune the woody stuff. So my snippers went to work, clearing the underbrush. I love feeling like a gardener, though I hardly know what I'm doing.

And later I watched one of my absolutely favourite programs, Upstart Crow, a moving and very clever comedy that brings Shakespeare hilariously to life. I've seen most of the episodes twice but this one was new, starring the divine, the always sublime and very funny Emma Thompson as Queen Elizabeth I. Perfection. Now I'm watching a CNN documentary about films of the 2000s and making a list of ones I still need to see: Lord of the Rings, Almost Famous, Lincoln, Chicago. Black Panther.

Here, in photos sent by his mother, is what it feels like to be young, with those fresh neurons relishing every moment. 7 years old, on his way to the Raptors. Hope you had a nice slow Saturday too.