Are you a time keeper or a time ignorer?

Are you keeping time? Can the world be divided into time keepers and time ignorers? Do those folks who do not wear time pieces simply ignore time, or do they keep time in their own way? I once heard someone say that “you cannot trust a person who does not wear a watch.” Today, many people do not wear a watch. Cell phones, laptops, GPS systems and PDA’s all keep perfectly accurate time. However, are the same folks who would wear a watch now using these devices, and those folks who could not care less about the time, still ignoring it?

Time keepers tend to be worriers and somewhat obsessive. However, they also feel responsible and compelled to live up to their temporal commitments. A time keeper is dedicated to the “keeping” of good time. This means being on time, doing things in a timely manner, being alert to the passing of time and using time wisely. As with all of life, there is a time to keep time and a time to ignore it. Time ignorers use time but are not obsessed with keeping track of time. They also keep their commitments but are less obsessed with the ritual aspects of time keeping and more concerned with the relational. It is not being on time that is important to them so much as being with time. Time ignorers live in the present and may be more concerned with the quality of the time they use. Time pieces can not measure the quality of the time we use only the coming and going of time. The real secret of time may lie in finding a balance between keeping time and ignoring time.

Are you a time keeper or a time ignorer? Do the above descriptions fit you at all? Would you say that sometimes you choose to ignore time and sometimes not ignore it? Have you found the right balance between keeping time and ignoring it? If not, what do you have to do to find a better balance in your life?