El tiempo: la ilusión más valiosa que tenemos
Salas Rod
[{'start': '0.000', 'end': '2.000', 'text': 'Some say it began with the Big Bang, others believe it was there before, like a backdrop waiting to be raised for the cosmic symphony.      What\n\nis a fact is that there is no imagined scenario without his presence, from the dance of particles to the infinite expansion of the universe.\n\nPhysicists with elegant equations try to represent it in cold numbers, while poets with their acute sensitivity try to capture it in warm verses.     I\n\nremember in my childhood how he let me enjoy discovery and gave me endless summers, barely giving me the promise of a future that seemed very far away.\n\nBut I imagine I\'m not the only one who believes that once we cross the threshold of adulthood, our perception is reversed.  And not only that, it seems like its speed is increasing.\n\nCaught in the tunnel of productivity, responsibilities, and the demands of an increasingly fast-paced world, we often lament "not having it."\n\nAnd paradoxically, when we find a respite from routine, we often waste it on unconscious distractions, as if it were an inexhaustible resource.\n\nMeasuring time seems like a human need, a desperate attempt to impose order on the chaos of existence.  Observing the cycles, the ceaseless rhythm of day and night, the changing phases of the moon and the promise of seasons.  Our ancestors began to become aware of the cyclical nature of time.\n\nMarks on bones and stone monuments aligned with the distant lights of the sky were the first steps in chronometry, the rudimentary calendars that attempted to predict the future and remember the past.\n\nAs civilization advanced, the measurement of time became more sophisticated.  Whether sundials or hourglasses, each invention represented a step forward in the quest for greater precision.\n\nThe adoption of the Babylonian sexagesimal system gave the world the division of the hour into minutes and minutes into seconds.\n\nThe invention of the mechanical clock in the Middle Ages revolutionized social life, introducing unprecedented synchronization and marking the beginning of an increasingly linear conception of time.\n\nYet, despite our obsession with breaking it down into ever-smaller units, time remains deeply subjective.\n\nA day of intense joy can feel like an eternity, while a decade of routine seems to fade into memory fleetingly.\n\nWhen monotony or anguish weigh on our shoulders.  What changes is not time itself, but our individual perception of its passage, shaped by our emotions, our experiences, and our state of mind.\n\nAnd it is in this gap between the objectivity of physical time and the subjectivity of our experience that a fundamental dilemma arises.\n\nIf time is, in essence, the raw material of our lives, the fabric of which our days are made, why do we treat it with such indifference?\n\nAnd in the fast-paced modern world, this indifference is amplified by social and technological dynamics.  It is now normal that, in any city, the daily routine of going to work or school consumes an alarming amount of time.       It\'s no\n\nsurprise to anyone who spends an hour and a half, or unfortunately much longer, trapped in the labyrinth of public transportation. This figure translates into full days a year dedicated exclusively to commuting, watching time evaporate in the stagnation of traffic.\n\nTechnology, which promised to free up our time and make our lives easier, has paradoxically also become a source of fragmentation and distraction.      Our\n\ndependence on mobile devices and social media seduces us with a constant stream of notifications, interrupting our concentration and robbing us of the present moment.\n\nEndless swipes through carefully designed interfaces designed to capture our attention offer instant but superficial gratification, leaving us at the end of the day feeling empty and like precious minutes, which added up to hours and days, have vanished into nothing.\n\nYet even amidst chaos or technological seduction, the possibility of resistance persists.  In that crowded carriage or in that endless traffic jam, there is still an opportunity to rescue small fragments of consciousness.\n\nRead a book that inspires us, listen to a podcast that nourishes our minds, allow ourselves to wander into creative thoughts, practice conscious breathing.  These micro-moments of presence can become a breath of calm in the desert of routine.\n\nBut wait: is there really any point in clinging to these fleeting moments?  Does it really benefit me to take 10 deep breaths and slow exhales with everyone crowding me on public transport?      Do\n\nthese attempts to make up for lost time have tangible value, or are they just painkillers that offer us the illusion of control over something that is irretrievably eluding us?\n\nSo what do we actually do with our time?  We often find ourselves in an internal struggle, debating whether we really "don\'t have time" or whether, instead, we are unable to utilize those seemingly empty moments.\n\nAnd while this internal discussion develops, time continues its relentless course, indifferent to our doubts and needs.\n\nWe live immersed in a constant back and forth between occupations and indecisions, postponing dreams and desires under the false promise of "the right time," as if we had an infinite reserve of eternity at our disposal.       We\n\ndistract ourselves with the urgent, with immediate tasks that offer us a momentary sense of accomplishment, relegating the important, that which truly nourishes our being and gives meaning to our existence, to a hypothetical future that may never arrive.     We\n\ncompulsively check our phones a hundred times a day, looking for an instant dose of novelty, but we rarely stop to reflect on the direction our lives are heading.\n\nThe irony is palpable: we long to live longer, but often don\'t know how to best live the time we have.\n\nWe wish we had more hours in the day, but we haven\'t cultivated the wisdom to use them meaningfully when they present themselves.\n\nFrom a physics perspective, the nature of time is even more puzzling.  Albert Einstein\'s theory of relativity revolutionized our understanding, demonstrating that time is not a universal, immutable constant, but a flexible dimension, intrinsically linked to space and susceptible to the influence of speed and gravity.\n\nTime can dilate, stretch, bend, flowing at different rates for observers in different frames of reference.  This relativistic conception challenges our everyday intuition of absolute and uniform time, opening up the opportunity for paradoxes and possibilities that, just when we thought we were beginning to understand quantum theory, make us suspect that time is perhaps just an illusion.\n\nBeyond physics, technology continues to transform our relationship with time in unprecedented ways.  Artificial intelligence and automation promise to free us from repetitive and tedious tasks, giving us the opportunity to have more free time.\n\nHowever, they also raise many questions about how we will use this freed-up time.      Will\n\nthese tools allow us to move toward greater presence and connection, or will they lead us to an even more fragmented existence dependent on instant gratification?\n\nAnd to conclude, the only thing this exploration of time has brought me to is the starting point that prompted me to begin it.\n\nMake a call for intentionality.  Appreciating the fleeting nature of each moment, investing our time in what we truly value, is perhaps the key to a more fulfilling existence, and finding a way to do all of this is what gives time meaning.\n\nWhether it\'s a reality or an illusion, at least try to make sure that what you do has an intention.     We\n\ndon\'t know how much time we have left and that\'s what makes it so precious.'}]