Plan to Do Things Promptly.
By Emma Hildreth Adams
EVERY effort at punctuality involves two acts—the purposing to do a thing, the fixing a time for doing a thing, and the doing it. The first step may be taken without the second, but never the second without the first. In this present stressful, forceful period of time, affairs are so organized that a vast proportion of the work we do is done in union with one, several, or many persons. And hence, by every one who values labor at all, there is to be done so great an amount of work that the time one takes for his doing has become a momentous, a tremendous consideration. Every individual engaged in any just class of labor feels himself restricted for time. Somehow, before the most diligent of workers little mountains of labor pile up daily. On all sides there come the earnest, heartfelt cries: “I have too little time!” “O, that the days were longer!” “How Time speeds by!” “The days are too short for my tasks!” These two important facts then—the being united with others in so much of our work and the immense amount of labor to be performed—should impel all persons who make right engagements to meet them punctually, at the stroke of the clock. But there is even a more serious view of this matter, which urgently requires our attention. In a very grave sense every man’s time is his own possession. That is to say, the Creator has given to every man his lifetime for two solemn ends—the working out of his own salvation, and the doing whatsoever work meanwhile the Creator assigns him. Not a moment of one man’s lifetime is the rightful possession of any other man. Therefore, the taking from any man, unnecessarily, any portion of his time, however small, is robbery of the most serious kind. It is taking from him that which neither the plunderer nor his victim can restore. You may purloin a man’s money, and all around him, usually, are Alaskas—of one extent or another—in which he may mine for more; you may seize a toiler’s loaf of bread, but there are bakeries at every turn; snatch a man’s watch, and the jewelers have them of all values; but a man’s time is measured off to him, and not all the worlds of the universe can extend it one hour. Now what? This: The person who consumes wilfully, carelessly, unnecessarily, twenty, thirty minutes, or an hour of another person’s time commits both a crime and a sin. There is no denying that this variety of thieving goes on daily to an enormous extent. It is accomplished in two ways—by failing to keep engagements promptly, and by dropping in upon people—at any hour of day or evening—solely to discuss the affairs of other persons, affairs with which neither party has right to meddle. It is noticeable that this variety of robbery is practised most frequently by three classes of persons: Those who have too little pressing work of their own to do; those who lack resources within themselves; and those who fail to realize that possibly they may have to account for a part of their neighbor’s time. But if it be wrong to consume unjustly the time of one person, what shall be said of him who takes time from one hundred or five hundred persons by failing to be punctual on some occasion? And what if this culpable act be his habit? Suppose a Sabbath-school teacher comes before his class of ten, five minutes late some morning. What has he done?—Simply this: He has deprived his pupils, as a class, of fifty minutes of time which he can never restore. For, suppose, in order to “make it up” to them, he decides to teach five minutes past the time. Does he make it up?—No. So doing he filches from them just one hundred minutes of their time. But what can be said of the leader of a meeting, behind time because he has permitted some one to detain him needlessly? of a business man, tardy often at the hour established to open office? of the great mass of people, habitually behind time because they lack a keen sense of equity in such things? But, the reader will ask, “What is one to do when prevented suddenly or unavoidably from stepping up to duty at the moment? Usually, when the unexpected happens, one may excuse himself therefor, and justly expect approval. But we think the instances are rare in which one is unavoidably detained from keeping an engagement punctually. A genuine, resolute, downright effort to be on time will bring one to the spot, just at, if not a little before, the assigned hour. One grand result of the habit of being punctual is the effect upon one’s own character. Such a person becomes known for reliability and rather than fail would forego any pleasure, and not a little profit. The habit influences immensely one’s thinking, feeling, doing. Punctuality is a trait which may be transmitted to children, as are features, form, intellect, a taste for art, a fondness for music, a bias toward piety, or a tendency toward crime. Being punctual is one grand way of being truthful, of being honest. Finally, a powerful inducement to punctuality, is that which appeals to the Christian particularly; namely, the divine Example in the case. The Scriptures contain pages of events illustrating God’s unswerving exactness in fulfilling His word. His moment for doing is always the “fulness of time.” The very stars also reiterate the beautiful story. Look at the wonderful system speeding around our sun for a center! Imagine one planet returning to its starting-point an hour, ten minutes, ten seconds behind time! Imagine one of them stopping, on its way, to gossip with a neighbor planet thus arriving at its own door-sill ten seconds late! Imagine one of them forgetting to start on time! How great value does God attach to punctuality!