When I woke up today, I wanted to pull the quilt over my head and sleep for a little more. So, I did that and let time pass. Then, the phone rang, and I let it ring for a bit. When it stopped, I picked up my phone and typed a message telling them I was in a meeting and would call them in a bit when I could. There was no meeting unless you count my sitting at the desk with a cup of coffee and solving a crossword one. But then, a white lie or two would not hurt a person, and for what it’s worth, I return all calls and reply to every message I see. Once I had solved it fully, and when the music brought me back to the land of the living, I called them and heard what they had to say, which was nothing as usual, to remind me of things I already remembered. Then, in the languid labour of every day, I sat to write.
Some days set their tone before you even begin living them. Today, I shall want for a slower day. But this day began not with rest but interruption, and now, I know it will be a day peppered with disruptions, big and small. There have been enough of these for me to know how it will all play out, and with that experience, I have a plan. I shall make myself scarce when I can, and I will put some things on tomorrow and still get some time to sleep in the sun.
There it goes, another unexpected call on this pesky phone. There, I lied again, for I needed to finish this piece; now, I have lost my train of thought!
Ah, yes, I need to steal a moment today, but now, I shall make it worth my time and steal several. At some point in life, all your time starts belonging to other people, like a botched will put into action, like some rights transferred without you realising it, like a deed signed haphazardly without reading the fine print. From that point on, you lay at the behest of others.
Could I get some time to read today? Could I take a nap? Can you give me an hour before I call you back?
This is preposterous, but there is no way out except losing your soul and lying. So, that is what we must all resort to, given there are things we want to spend our time for because if you cannot think of a few, the world is all the more eager to spend it for you.