And just like that . . .

BOOM! And just like that it is summer and BOOM again and just like that the days that have been growing "longer" and now beginning to shrink and BOOM still again and it is the Fourth of July and suddenly Labor Day and then another BOOM! and just like that there is a nip in the air and football is on the scene and those really are pumpkins outside of that Kroger store.
And BOOM! and BOOM! and BOOM! again!
How quickly the days slide right on by.
Just seconds ago, or so it seems, those leaves were beginning to appear on the trees and buds were forming. And just like that, BOOM! fully leafed, buds to blossoms and now all gone. And it is summer. What happened to Springtime? and April? and that whole, seven weeks long Easter Season?
It seems impossible now to even remember those days back so many eons ago when the time between Thanksgiving and Christmas seemed like an eternity, a stretch that would just never end. That's the way it seemed when we were young.
How is it that as we get older, the days seem to move more quickly?
Oh, those who know will tell us that it all has to do with how many days we have ahead in life and how many are now already spent. Somehow that is what creates the illusion, and it is an illusion because every day has the same number of seconds, minutes and hours, that time is moving more quickly.
Back in college at Orchard Lake St. Mary's where, again back then, we studied Polish, we learned a traditional Polish song, Jak szybko mijają chwile. Translation: How Quickly the Time Does Pass.
Traditionally, this is sung at celebrations, especially birthdays and anniversaries.
But back in those college days, who would have truly grasped the full truthfulness of this.
As I feel the days so swiftly whizzing by I wonder: How do we ever convince the young of how precious each moment, each day truly is?
They won't believe it.
They have all the time in the world. Or so they think.
And then BOOM!
All I can do, all you can do, all any of us who now understand can really do is to embrace each moment, welcome every opportunity and treat as precious and sacred the time we now have.
I did a Google to capture the words of that old Polish song so that I could share a translation with you. What I found was not just the words of the song but some comments that followed. A couple that really caught my attention and also told me that I am not alone in feeling that BOOM! I share with you:

One commented on how: "As the years go by the words to this song bear more and more meaning for me. Sadly, also, there are less and less people to sing it with and slowly its message is coming true."

Another said this: "This song is so beautiful but sad. I remember the day that my Aunt Helen could no longer sing it because of all the sad memories. Such is life."

The memories really do not have to be sad. The sadness comes from the richness and beauty of memories passed, times that have passed. We can and should create wondrous memories to someday be cherished before the next BOOM! comes.


Here is the translation of that song:

How swiftly moments are passing, how swiftly time goes by.

A year, a day, a moment from now, we’ll not be here you or I,

A year, a day, a moment from now, we’ll not be here you or I,

So while we still are youthful and spring is drawing near,

At least for this brief moment may our eyes shed no tear,

At least for this brief moment may our eyes shed no tear.

And here is the song:

Jak szybko mijają chwile