‘Time is probably one of the most precious things we have as human beings.’

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Friday eds’ note

Time is probably one of the most precious things we have as human beings. Not only is it precious, but seemingly, expensive too. Just look at the expressions we use regarding time …

“Time is money.” 

“Your time is valuable.” 

“A waste of my time.”

If you think about it, we’re either hoping for more time, wishing time would move faster or longing to suspend time. We use expressions like “in the nick of time” and “time for a change” because we are conscious that, of all the things life has bestowed on us, time is the most valuable. Not our possessions, looks or accolades, but that one thing we ironically can and cannot measure. 

Running out of time — whether to catch a plane to the holiday for which you’ve saved or realising you’ve only ticked off one thing on your new year’s resolution list — is one of the toughest things to be faced with. 

It could be a mental construct —unless you’re in a morgue, you still have time to achieve whatever you desire — or a tangible running out of time but, either way, feeling as if you’re short of time can be stressful and even heartbreaking.

Finding time to reply to all my messages has become a losing battle. I have messages from as far back as May that I haven’t answered. Not because I don’t care —I do. But I cannot deal with the volume of things I need to address on a daily basis. 

From voice notes, to videos, to work groups, to friendship circles, I’m drowning in the overwhelming flow of messages coming through my phone. And I’m only talking about WhatsApp here, I’m not even going to talk about the social media DMs, Telegram and incessant emails. 

Maybe this is just a me problem but I don’t think it’s possible to have more than 20 conversations happening all at once on text. I wish I had more time to reply but then somebody would have to pay me to do that because that’s all I’d spend my time doing.

But if there’s one thing I truly wish I had more time for it is reading. I’m a writer because I love reading. There’s a blurry photo of me, taken by my dad, as a pimply teenager hiding behind a broadsheet paper. 

I come from a family of readers; my mom is the fastest reader, my sister is second and I believe my brother and I are the ones lagging behind. As the weight of adulting has become heavier, my time to read for leisure has dwindled. Look, I’ll admit it, being an editor has not helped. I read a copy every single day — if this is sounding like an excuse, it probably is — and so reading has become more of a vocation than an enjoyment. This is not something I’ve fully reconciled with. Reading makes me happy, makes my imagination awaken from the coma of being in a capitalist society and reminds me that whole worlds can exist in my mind.

On a flight to Cape Town last month I finished Shonda Rhimes’ The Year of Yes (ja, I know I’m hella late) and, I laughed so loud, and unexpectedly, the flight attendants laughed with me. That’s the beauty of reading — a single, well-written sentence can break your heart or have you crying with laughter. 

I’ve decided 2023 will be my personal Year of Yes because the book inspired me and had me excited for the future; it was funny, vulnerable and honest. This is why the December holidays are so important to me. Besides having mimosas at 10am and eating like I won’t gain weight, they afford me time (see what I mean) to read at my leisure.

I’m aware some of you manage to  exercise every day, run businesses and read four books in a month and to you I say, mazel tov. But I believe I represent the majority of people in South Africa — overworked and exhausted. Between load-shedding, floods and our incompetent leaders, I do not have the capacity to sit and read a book by candlelight while dealing with looming deadlines. 

But in December everyone switches off, so my phone goes quiet, my email says OOO (out of office) and I get to relax and read without having to give feedback on the sentence construction, grammar or angle. 

This is why I’m super excited to bring you our literary edition. Every year, Brittle Paper releases their 50 Most Notable African books and this year they’ve doubled the number. Mail & Guardian Friday has the honour of publishing a list of 50 of those books. Whether you’re looking for fiction or nonfiction, books for young adults, poetry or a memoir, their stellar list is all you need to choose your next holiday read. 

This edition also celebrates the reissue of South African photographer Ernest Cole’s book House of Bondage, which was banned by the apartheid government in 1966.

I hope you make the time to read this festive season. If you haven’t found a book, remember what Tony Morrison said: “If there’s a book that you want to read, but it hasn’t been written yet, then you must write it.”