Soap Box

As we approach the end of another year I oftentimes turn my attention to the chorus of voices that are so plentiful this time of year, that proclaim, “Where did the year go?”

Now, as one who has already lived up 83 of however many more years our Creator has allowed me, the passage of time becomes a more serious and sober subject and frivolously commenting on how rapidly it is disappearing is a constant reminder of just how fast the sand is flowing into the bottom half of the hourglass.

So, as one who has ample cause and occasion to ponder such things, let me share some conclusions I have come to over the last eight-plus decades.

Time moves much faster in retrospect than it does in contemplation. Every hour still has sixty minutes and it is impossible for one sixty-minute segment to actually pass faster than any other sixty-minute segment.

Of course, time goes by so smoothly when we’re enjoying it that it seems as if it glides right on out into eternity way before we want it to, but, no matter how fast it disappears and takes some increment of our lifetimes with it, there is one thing time cannot do.

Time can’t take away the memories you made during its passing by, and herein lies the process of realizing that time is not going by as fast as we thought.

In other words, 2019 has been a busy year for me, I will travel around eighty-thousand miles, play over one hundred and ten cities, do over one hundred and fifty interviews, play several Grand Ole Opry appearances and charity events, write one hundred new soapbox articles, sign thousands of autographs and continue work on a new book and several musical projects and when viewed from this day In December when it has almost gone by, it appears in a whirl, a multicolored parade of day in day out activity, seemingly a quick hello and a swift goodbye and out of here.

But if I stop and harken back to the days when I first came back off vacation last March, when we started rehearsals for the new show, when the tour began with the early dates in Florida, and when I look at my tour calendar and remember all the different cities we appeared in, and pause to examine and relive those experiences, the passing of time lengthens considerably.

And when you apply the same principle to present time, truly treasuring every moment from the time your feet hit the floor until your head hits the pillow, taking the time to savor even the mundane, day to day experiences, you can enjoy the full measure of each day.

For instance, my exercise regimen is a challenge every day, not that the level of the work out I do is extreme by any means, but it is designed to push me to the limits of my comfort zone and therefore a daily confrontation.

I have literally not been bored in years because there is always a song or a story to work on and I try to play scales on my guitar every day to keep my fingers loose.

I am a voracious reader and during football season I am usually flipping channels keeping up with two or more games at a time.

And then comes the best part of my day when I get to walk on stage and play my music for folks.

Going to work involves another routine where we get to the gig an hour or so before set time and do our meet and greet which could involve seeing as many as one hundred people just before showtime.

Then we head for the stage and play our set, walk off the stage out of the venue and on to the bus and head for the next town.

I can do all day just spending time with my wife, and love every minute of it or spend a whole Sunday afternoon watching football with my son, and I ain’t even mentioned food yet.

Now I know that not everybody makes their living traveling around the country entertaining people, but the same principles apply regardless of your vocation, taking the time to enjoy every minute of the day as it progresses can make a lot of difference about how you view the passing of time.

So, if it seems as if life is getting away from you, my advice would be, throttle the day down, make every hour count and start pulling out those old precious memories and spend time doing something you enjoy.

Life is beautiful, live it to its fullest, every day of it.

What do you think?

Pray for our troops our police and the peace of Jerusalem

God Bless America

— Charlie Daniels

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