Next Sunday, March 10, we will spring forward for Daylight
Saving Time. On Monday, March 11, the Sun
will rise an hour later and delay its setting until 7 PM for an extra hour of
light. Well, of course the Sun will rise
and set as it always does. But we won’t.
For we are creatures of the clock.
For most of human history we have measured time by natural
phenomena, usually the movement of the Sun: dawn and dusk, shortening and
lengthening shadows, and, at night the movement of the stars. Mechanical clocks
did not appear until around 1300 in Europe. Pocket watches did not appear until
the latter 1600s and were limited to the wealthy. They were relatively inaccurate, gaining, or
losing an hour a day. They did not
become widespread or accurate until the mid-19th century with
advances in technology. Wrist watches
did not become common until the 20th century.
Today we live by the clock: school, work, meetings,
deadlines, travel, entertainment. Almost
everything we do is dictated by the clock.
The rising and setting of the Sun have become incidental, except for
March 10.
An open space with tall grass sits behind our house. Some
would call it a meadow, some a marsh,
and a few might refer to it as a drainage ditch. On most mornings I sit on our deck overlooking
this grassy area at dawn. In the last
few weeks, a peculiar thing has occurred. The black birds have chosen it for
their sleeping place. In the pre-dawn darkness, they are silent. You would not know they were there. But with
the first gray light, they begin to chirp to one another. As the light grows, they
crescendo into a loud chorus of chirping. Then, at a precise moment, as if a
conductor waved his wand, they fall silent for a few seconds. Suddenly, with
the first light of day they take flight: hundreds of them, in waves, filling
the air with the sound of their wings. They make a few circles and disappear to
distant places to spend the day.
Each morning, they fly a little earlier as the days lengthen.
A few weeks ago they flew at 7:15 AM ,
then 7:00, then 6:45. This morning the
precise time for Sunrise was set for 6:30 AM.
They flew at 6:26 AM. For them, day light saving is constant and
daily. Every day they fly within minutes
of the rising Sun. And, in the evening they return, a noisy reunion in the bare-limbed
trees above our house. This evening official sunset was 5:55 PM. They began
their descent back to the tall grass at 5:54, by the hundreds. They use every waking moment of the day with
precision.
The Bible encourages us to make good use of time. It reminds
us that we are mortal, that time is fleeting and that we must choose to use the
day efficiently, as the birds do. The
oldest Psalm is Psalm 90, a Psalm of Moses, written hundreds of years before
King David was born. The Psalm reminds
us, “The days of our lives are but 70 years, or if by strength, 80. So teach us to number our days that we may
present to thee a heart of wisdom.”
Jesus reminded us, “We must work the works of Him who sent
me while it is day. Night is coming when
no man can work.”
Tinsley's Civil War Novel, Bold Springs is free as an eBook on Amazon March 5-9. Chosen Best Christian Historical Fiction by Reader's Favorite 2022.
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