REMEMBERING TIME

By Ankhet Hesi-Ra

In Ancient Kemet the ancestors spoke of entering a place where time is no more and they spoke of the ‘one who is without time’ as fi nen tera  . This person was given visions of the world. This visioning was not only in the form of foreshadowing but was also insights into the unseen world of discoveries called the imagination- the magical power in man (Azzahir, 2006).

In this fast paced technology driven life filled with virtual contact and video gaming one can easily miss simple pleasures like the rising of the sun, the roar of the ocean, the feel of the wind, and the smell after the rain. Our incapacity to stop for one minute and observe nature has us functioning in a comatose state where we are devoid of connecting to the essence of life and thereby never truly experiencing it and all of its’ beauty!

Time is one of our most precious commodities, yet we treat it as if it is a useless ongoing thing that we just have to deal with… in its annoyance phases. Unfortunately, many of us don’t have the luxury to bathe in its existence. Instead we toil in its presence and forget it is consistently here for us to enjoy with every breath we breathe. I, too, find myself struggling to finding a balance between everything I want to do, everything I have to do, and everything I ‘can’ do.

As a child I remember having the time to enjoy life using my imagination to explore possibilities – doing things I had the time and desire to do. I remember having this ‘happiness’!!! This feeling of appreciation that comes from freely connecting to life! It is deeply rooted in the core of our being where we feel the beat of life and its existence in everything.

I spent a lot of my time outdoors connecting to the world doing simple things like picking blackberries or visiting my neighbors asking could if I pick mulberries from their mulberry trees. Climbing high with my friends, watching out for snakes, we’d compete and sometimes share our goods.  We’d planned journeys (l-o-n-g walks throughout neighborhoods) in search of our treasures.  Four square, two square, hopscotch, and jacks. Marbles and tricks with jack knives. Uno, spades, old maid, and go fish ended  with tears of laughter and shouts of joy. And YES, there was baseball, football, kickball and dodgeball!!! That time in sun with the dirt running, chasing, throwing catching for a win, we’d observe each other and anticipate every next move!

I remember I smiled because I could see. I laughed because I could hear. I dance, twirled, skipped, ran, and walked because I could move. I built things with my hands and I sung VERY loudly because I had a voice that needed to be heard. Everything was special and unique. Everything had a divine presence in my life.

Those days of feeling free -being unconsciously aware of my ones with life but living, connecting, enjoying, and celebrating it appears to come every so often. Yet, e-v-e-r-y time I pick-up my camera I am instantly drawn to the place in my heart that allows me the freedom to experience all the simple pleasures of life. For at that moment I can pause… and connect to something bigger than just myself where perfection is ALL I see. And I once again become reengaged in enjoying time the way it was meant to be- LOVE Life, LOVE Self and BECOME free!!!

Ankh, Udja, Seneb (Life, Prosperity, and Health)!!!  Hotep  (Peace)!!!