Photo and Commentary ©2026 by Shelley Schurch
Thursday, May 14, 2026
We don’t use this little timer anymore. Technology provides us with better and more audible options with which to time our three-minute Boggle game rounds.
It’s a good thing we don’t need to rely on this timer, because it’s stuck. The little white sands aren’t faithfully filtering down. If we give it a firm tap, a few sands trickle down, then stop.
A reluctant timer is not a reliable instrument for measuring time. And being “stuck” sounds like a negative experience to me. However, I’m thinking that even though flipping this timer upside down doesn’t change much, we can flip this scenario by simply changing our words.
What if we say that the timer is simply pausing, or is a symbol of “time standing still”? Can you think of a time when you were experiencing such joy that you wished time could stand still? I can. We often take photos of such times, trying to capture them, so we can re-live them at a glance.
There are times when time does seem to stand still, to not even exist. I know when I am having a very good time, because I am unaware of time.
It’s ironic that this little timer, whose sands are stuck, reminds me of the concept of “flow.”
A friend introduced me to this concept many years ago, with a book written by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, sometimes referred to as “the father of flow.” This Hungarian-American psychologist is known for recognizing and naming the concept.
Of the many descriptions I’ve read of flow, I offer this one: “Flow is a state where you are so immersed in an activity that you lose track of time, self-consciousness fades, and you feel a deep sense of purpose and enjoyment. We often identify this as the “optimal experience.” (“What is Flow in Positive Psychology?” 9 Oct 2025 by Laura Copley, Ph.D., LPC)
All this flowing reminds me of a chorus that is usually sung with energetic gestures. The gist of it is: “I’ve got peace like a river, I’ve got love like the ocean, I’ve got joy like a fountain in my soul.”
Sounds good, doesn’t it? It sounds both inspirational and aspirational to me, because my days are not always flowing so freely with peace, love, and joy. But I know Who is the true “Father of flow,” and I know He is eager and willing to provide what I lack.
I think Eden was full of flow. I think that in heaven we will be overflowing with flow! We have joys ahead that we cannot begin to imagine now.
But for now, we have this prayer:
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Romans 15:13 NIV)
Speaking of joy, today is our wedding anniversary. How did forty-eight years flow by so fast? To quote a greeting card I bought many years ago, which may be my all-time favorite greeting card, “I wonder where the years have gone, but never how else I could have spent them.”
Happy Anniversary, my love!