Last weekend someone from one of our large U.S. cities told me he has a two-hour commute each way for work each day. That’s four hours a day! When asked if he is on a commuter train, he said no, he is in his car…in traffic.

          So I started to think about what I would do with four hours in traffic each day. As it is, I am close enough to church that I can barely hear one song on the “60’s on 6” channel before arriving at my destination. Not knowing how this man uses his time, I came up with some possibilities. I could pray approximately twenty rosaries, listen to four or five Broadway original cast albums, ‘read’ two audible books per week, follow several podcasts a day, discover more news and commentary than is healthy, talk to my sisters and other family members on the phone (hands-free, of course), or dictate my memoirs.

          Then another thought occurred to me: what would I do if I suddenly discovered I had four extra hours per day, hours not spent commuting? Sadly, I’m not sure how well I would use the time.  I’d probably work more, waste a bit more time, or stop for coffee more often. I’d also hopefully read more, talk to friends or take more walks outside.

          When it is all said and done, how many hours does one have in a lifetime? There are 8,760 hours per year or 700,800 in an eighty-year lifespan. I have just spent more than an hour writing this meditation. And you, the reader, have used up some of your valuable time trying to decipher my point!  

“Teach us to count our days aright,

that we may gain wisdom of heart.”

Psalm 90:12