The Mathematics of Memory (Why Every Year Feels Shorter Than The Last)
Dear Time Traveler
Remember when summer vacation felt like an eternity? When Christmas seemed impossibly far away in December? When you were eight years old and a single year felt like... well, forever?
Now here you are, wondering where the entire month of June disappeared to.
You're not losing your mind. You're experiencing one of life's cruellest optical illusions.
Here's the startling truth: As we age, our internal calendar shifts. Here's why: when you're 10 years old, one year represents 10% of your entire existence - a vast chunk of time filled with wonder and firsts. But by 50, it's just 2%. Naturally, our brains—those efficient, story-editing machines—compress what's familiar and spotlight what’s novel.
It's not that nothing is happening—it's that your brain has stopped registering it as new. And novelty is what keeps time feeling expansive.
This is why your first day at a new job feels endless, but your daily commute becomes a blur. Why your first kiss is seared in memory, but you can't remember what you had for lunch three days ago.
The Paradox of Routine
As adults, we create comfortable routines that make life manageable but time forgettable. We wake up, drink coffee, go to work, sleep, repeat. Days blend into weeks, weeks into months, months into "wait, it's December already?"
But here's what the calendar companies don't want you to know: you have more power over time than you think.
Break the pattern. Take a different route home. Brush your teeth with your left hand. Say yes to the invitation you'd normally decline. Novelty expands time by forcing your brain to pay attention.
Practice presence. Put down your phone during dinner. Really taste your morning coffee. Feel the texture of your child's hand in yours. When you're fully here, time stretches like taffy.
Create micro-adventures. You don't need to take a vacation in the Bahamas. Walk through a neighbourhood you've never explored. Learn three words in a language you've never spoken. Read a book outside your usual genre.
The Gift of Perspective
Every morning, you wake up with 86,400 seconds deposited into your account. By midnight, they're gone forever. No rollover minutes. No extensions. No refunds.
Your 20s weren't just faster because you were busier. They were precious because they were limited. Your 40s aren't just accelerating because of responsibilities. They're valuable because they're irreplaceable.
Time isn't speeding up. You're just finally understanding its true worth.
Your Mission This Week
Choose one thing you'll do differently. One small rebellion against your routine. Something unexpected. Something that makes you pause. Then notice how time reacts. Because while you can't slow down time, you can absolutely expand it.
This reinforces the theme of "expanding time" through micro-disruption.
Seneca's quote, "Life is long if you know how to use it," emphasizes that the length of one's life is not determined by its duration, but by how effectively time is utilized. Most people don't actually lack time, but rather they squander it on frivolous activities, procrastination, and regrets about the past or anxieties about the future.
What’s your “time-expanding” moment this week?
"And parents, you have—not the responsibility—but the privilege to create your child’s most memorable moments. Make them worthy."
"Time flies. It's up to you to be the navigator."
Janene Marais
KVV Inc. | Conveyancer
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