Sep
Mannar Time
It got up to about 86 degrees today, and promises to be 88 or 89 for tomorrow. Summer is still here. People think summer ends with Labor Day, but this year it ends on the 22nd. Warm weather lingers. The weather and seasons take no account of our calendars.
Today I was making items for sale in Winter. I was painting a variety of Yule miniatures: skaters, skiers, snowmen. There is a way to make the snowmen look very cold. The trick is to shade them with a very light blue. If you look at snow, you will see that most shadows are not black or gray. They are blue. And here I am making miniature snowmen in August and September. I do not even advertise them until November. Were I to wait to make them until the end of October, I would be too late.
Sometimes, what is “on time” for the world is “too late” for you. November might be “on time” for most people to do their Yule preparations. It is too late if you are making Yule items. The difference is a matter of placement. Most people are enjoying the season. Those making Yule items are providing for the season. The timing varies accordingly.
The point is that “on time” depends on your role in a given situation. For example, “on time” for a member of a wedding party would be “too late” for the caterer, and “too early” for the regular guests. In the case of the Yule items given earlier, October would be “too early” for the customers and “too late” for me. You can probably find examples of your own.
The goal is not just being “on time”, but being on time for the role that you fulfill.
Here we are at a crossroads between time and an aspect of the Mannar Rune. This is something to ponder. We rarely think of time as it relates to our identity and the various roles we fill.
