Farewell, June!

I'm happy to welcome July and midsummer, but I'm a bit alarmed at how quickly June fled. I used to think that this rapid passage of time was just part and parcel of getting older. But last year the school year flew by quickly, and one day I commented to my students that, to them, the year must seem to be dragging by, but to me it had gone by with unusual speed. They assured me that the year had sped by for them, too.

My sons, ages 13 and 9, also told me that they think time is hurtling--but I remember being their age and thinking that it couldn't pass quickly enough, that it crept along.

So what is this new time, in which even children who should enjoy the leisure of endless summer days think that time passes too quickly? Is it actually accelerating without our knowledge? Where is Einstein when I need him?

I have not signed my children up for anything--not sports, not camps, not classes. I just wanted them to be able to relax. Still, though, they feel there is not enough time in the day. I wonder at this urgency we all feel.

Is this a personal phenomenon, or have you noticed it, too?

(photo: wildflowers in front of my neighbor's garage.)