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Time.
It is a gift from God.
A gift that no one really understands.
Why are some people blessed with many, many years?
And some, all too few?
Why do our teenage years seem to be never-ending? We are always waiting for the day when we will become an adult.
That 21st birthday?
Or that 18th birthday?
It couldn't get here soon enough.
We waited.
And waited.
And time passed by ever-so-slowly.
But the older we became, the faster the hands on the clock seemed to tick.
Physically impossible, I know.
But it appeared as if those hands had been wound too tightly.
Like when you wind up a toy too much and it runs twice as fast for a while.
When you are no longer young, it is as if every single day goes by in the blink of an eye.
The blink of an eye. I never cared very much for that idiom.
I knew the meaning but couldn't relate to the phrase.
Until now.
That is how I feel when I look back.
As I previously mentioned, I will be turning 53 next month.
Lord willing.
And I honestly do not know how that even happened.
Kind of like the double-nickle thing
Because the last I looked, I was the mother of three young boys.
My babies.
Who are still my babies.
Always.
Giving them their baths, cooking their meals, cleaning their rooms, playing video games alongside them.
Helping them with their homework.
Going to their basketball games. School plays. Fundraisers.
But I blinked. And it is gone.
There will never be any more of those moments.
And I am heartbroken.
Because I blinked.
In the end, when our gift of time has ceased, I believe you only end up with a lot of I-wishes and if-onlys.
I believe we will all have regrets.
The things we should have said.
The things we should have done.
The places we should have gone.
The people we should have loved a little more.
The ones we should have treated better.
So many regrets.
Yes, I have no doubt there will be several I wishes and if onlys.
But why?
What seemed so important to me that I didn't travel?
Why was I so quiet that I didn't speak my voice?
What was I afraid of that I didn't take the chance?
Why did I spend a life alone and afraid to love somebody?
Perhaps it was because …
I was too busy working.
Too busy cleaning.
Too busy doing chores.
Too busy binge-watching reality television shows.
Yes, I missed out on life to watch programs about people living their life.
How ironic.
Don't blink.
Because one day you will be rocking your baby to sleep and whispering lyrics to a calming lullaby into the tufts of their hair.
And the next minute you will be carrying boxes and dufflebags of items into their dorm room.
Crying as you drive away.
Watching them wave goodbye.
Don't blink.
Because the shelter puppy you fell in love with at first sight and who has been your best friend for more than a decade, is now breathing their last moments of life.
And all the prayers in the world isn't going to give them any more time.
Do not blink.
For one minute you will be playing make believe in your bedroom.
You will pretend you are working in an occupation that you hope to have achieved when you are older.
The "What do I want to be when I grow up?" game.
You play it with your friends.
You play it with your imaginary friends.
You play it by yourself.
Because you absolutely love what you are doing.
Perhaps you are a doctor.
A nurse. A policeman. A teacher. A firefighter. A model. A football player.
Even a cheerleader.
The choices are endless when you are 5 or 6.
But in the blink of an eye, you are no longer pretending.
Your imaginary friends have gone.
Instead, you reach out and grab ahold of that piece of paper that lets you know your schooling is finally over.
It is time to go to work.
But the possibilities are no longer endless.
You have learned about money.
You have learned about life.
And you know.
You understand how we usually do not get the job we once dreamed about having when we were 5 or 6.
So, we become grocery store clerks. Bank tellers. Fast-food employees. Secretaries. Factory workers.
Not ballerinas. Or princesses.
Even though it may not be our dream job, whatever you do …
Don't blink.
Because the time has come where we realize that we spend our time waiting for the mailman to deliver our next Social Security check.
And it isn't even enough to cover our monthly bills.
Don't Blink.
Because one minute you are outside running. Laughing. Playing hide and seek. Games of hopscotch.
Freezetag. Catch.
Blink, and what felt like mere minutes have now found you inside a high school stadium where you are running track.
Or running down a basketball court inside the high school gymnasium.
You listen as your parents call your name. Cheering you on. Even if you are only on the sidelines.
Don't blink.
Because before you know it, you are no longer playing freezetag or catch.
You are not running track and playing sports.
You are taking walks through the mall or down your street in order to simply maintain your health.
Don't blink.
There will come a time when it will become a struggle to even get out of bed in the morning.
Maybe you will reach for a walker or a cane that will help you get to the kitchen easier.
If you are lucky.
For oftentimes, we can no longer get out of bed. And we must learn to rely on caretakers who barely know our names to bring us our everything.
Again, time is a gift.
But it goes by far too quickly.
So, be sure to keep your eyes open.
And cherish the world that is before you.
And whatever you do … do not blink.
Because you don't want to miss it.
(Stenger is the community editor for the Herald-Star and The Weirton Daily Times newspapers. She can be contacted at jstenger@heraldstaronline.com.)