Alice kept a close eye on time. It was a major driving force in her life. She was fascinated by it, at least when it wasn’t driving her around the bend. The thought of ever being late was a stimulus that could set heart racing. She had a small collection of watches; one for every type of occasion. Every spring and fall she synchronized them with Greenwich Mean Time to ensure that they were as accurate as possible.

One afternoon, Alice and Blake (the new tenant down the hall) engaged in a brief conversation. It began when they stepped onto the elevator of their apartment building, and he noticed her glance at her watch.

“Nice watch,” Blake said, smiling. “Is it new?”

“Thank you,” said Alice. “I’ve had it for about a year.”

It’s odd, isn’t it” said Blake, “we count something that doesn’t exist.”

“Say what?” said Alice, with a puzzled look.

“Time–it’s just a concept. All there actually is, is the eternal now; but humankind mentally divides it into arbitrary slices that we label seconds, minutes, hours, and days.”

“But there’s even atomic clocks,” said Alice. “They’re incredibly accurate.” The elevator doors slid open, and they stepped out, onto the 8th floor.

“Yes, I know,” said Blake, “but they’re still just measuring a concept.”

“I’m not sure that I know what you mean,” said Alice.

“Can we sit for a minute?” said Blake, with a glance toward the bench opposite the elevator. Alice nodded, and they sat down.

“This might help,” he said. “Time is just a convenient concept. It’s basically a framework that we use to arrange our lives. It allows us to schedule appointments and a conceptual future.”

“Conceptual?” said Alice, perplexed.

“Yup, conceptual. Let’s try this,” said Blake. “If I asked you to meet me at McMillan Park this Saturday at 2:00 p.m. to go for a walk, when do you think that would take place? That is, if you agreed.”

“Well, this Saturday at 2:00 p.m.”

“This is where the idea of time gets tricky,” said Blake. “Our walk at the park could only take place now.”

“But that’s crazy!” exclaimed Alice. “Now, we’re sitting on a bench in our apartment building.”

“Is it?” asked Blake. “Can you ever live the future, even half an hour from now?”

Alice became still, and a grin swept across her face as the answer popped into her awareness. “No, I guess not.”

“We only live now,” said Blake. “It’s all there is.”

“I agree,” said Alice. “It’s important to be in the moment.”

“We can never actually be in a moment, either; because a moment is still a measurement of time. It might help if you considered the Now as a constant backdrop, rather than a measurement. We literally can’t escape it.”

“This is so strange,” said Alice.

“I agree,” said Blake. “We live our lives as though a real past and a real future actually exist; but they don’t. And they never will. The past is just a conceptual period in memory; and the future is just a conceptual period in imagination.”

“So, if I understand you correctly,” said Alice, “you’re saying that this morning at my job doesn’t really exist.”

“Not beyond memory, no,” said Blake.

“Sure feels real,” said Alice.

Blake smiled. “I know. I learned something from Eckhart Tolle that helped me understand this stuff more clearly. Here’s an example he once shared: He said that if you had a time machine and could push a button and travel backward to the past–say to the 17th century–that you would still step out of the machine and say, “Now, I’m in the 17th century!”

“I get it,” said Alice, smiling. “And now, I guess I better get these frozen groceries into the refrigerator before they melt!”

With that, Alice and Blake stood and headed in opposite directions to their apartments. He had only taken a few steps, when he turned around and said, “What do you think about having a walk in McMillan Park? Would you like to go sometime?”

“Sure,” said Alice, with a smile. “Now?”

***

Dear Readers: Have you been carrying worries that belong to the conceptual “person” of space-time? They don’t belong to the real YOU. “Time” (of several weeks, or even longer duration) also seems to occur in our dream-state dreams; but when we merge once again with waking-state reality, we realize that such occurred within minutes. Therefore, can “time” be fundamental? If you’d like to investigate your essential nature more deeply, I offer you my YouTube video entitled “The Nature of Reality.”

Dare to Dream (and care for one another).

With heartfelt regards,

Art

Copyright © – 2026 – R. Arthur Russell

P.S. Please share this article if you enjoyed it. If you’d like to view my latest book (This Taste of Flesh and Bones), press here. My YouTube videos can be found at Think2wice@I-Am-Aware. May the content of either or both help you along your spiritual journey. “Thank You” & “Note to Publishers” 🙏🏻🧡