Does Being "On Time" Matter?

To most people time is a system of sequential relations that helps us understand events that succeed one another. However, in a philosophical view there may be more to time that just a continuous duration of moments. Time is a key element in the day to day life of every living thing on the planet, but what happens when someone asks you to explain to them what time is? As you stumble for the words to come out of your mouth, there’s a split second where you doubt yourself and wonder does time even exist? As one contemplates this metaphysical question they realize do they base the schedule of their lives on a scale that may not even exist? Which raises the question does being on time matter? Living in a world that uses time in every fraction of a moment, one must agree that being on time does matter; especially if your one who does believe that time exists.

In order to understand time as a whole, we must first classify time into smaller parts as we combine notes to form a song. “If you subtract from time all the bits that are not, you are left only with the now” (Scruton, paragraph 3). This “now” that is described in the quote above is probably the most insignificant part of time, because according to this definition, now is such a small fragment of time that it passes so quickly we can’t even begin to imagine grasping it. ‘Before’ and ‘after’ are considered by most to be parts of time; however they are more ways of understanding the world. Before and after are used to explain when an event occurred or will occur relative to ‘now’. However, the past, present, and future are actual features of the world, where someone can mark a certain moment in time that they wish to refer to. The present can also be more significant than now, because it can be thought of as a series of moments, to convey a certain duration of time which we currently live in.

Once the concept of time is vividly understood, one must agree that being on time matters. If no one was ever on time nothing would ever work and nothing would ever get done. When it comes to being late there is never a positive to this act; an act that wastes both your own time as well as your co-workers. “I know the teachers there are so busy they have their own families to get home to” (Ziomislic, 2008). This quote clearly shows the guilt the speaker felt when they were late picking up their child from daycare. This person has realized they’ve wasted the teachers’ time, their child’s time, as well as their own time. When it comes to preventing lateness, people should plan their time ahead and give themselves some extra time for clearance purposes. Life is a train that is never slowing; never stopping to let its passengers off and the best way to keep up with the train is to be on time.

Works Cited:
Scruton, Roger. (1996) An Intelligent Person’s Guide to Philosophy. New York: Penguin Books.
Ziomislic, Diana (September 10 2008) “Daycare late fees no deterrent, study finds”. Parent Central.Ca Retrieved September 10 from http://parentcentral.ca/parent/articlePrint/454142