"The Tincture of Time" by Rev. Barbara Merritt

Tue Oct 16 13:47:24 EDT 2007

M I N I S T E R‘S   M E M O

“The Tincture of Time”

The mystics in all world religions claim that “the kingdom of God is
 within.” More specifically they insist that inside the microcosm of the
human body lives the vast macrocosm of existence. “Close your eyes in
meditation and prayer,” they say, “focus your attention in the darkness and
eventually you will see flashes of bright light.” You will discover what
Rumi described as the “light of 10,000 suns.”

The good news is that I am currently seeing flashing lights. The bad news is
that they occur when my eyes are open. Rather than inner visions, my right
eye is behaving oddly. Fearing a torn retina, I rushed to my ophthalmologist
who dilated the eye, and after a thorough assessment he announced his
professional good news, “Your retina is intact.” And then he said, (and I
quote) “The bad news is that there is no treatment, no exercises, no
medication. Only the ‘tincture of time’ will hopefully alleviate your
symptoms.” He proceeded to show me a large model of an eyeball and explained
to me that babies are born with this wonderful liquid gel filling the cavity
of the eye. And from that day of birth the liquid is disassembling,
deteriorating and generally becoming less effective.

It seems that planned obsolescence was not the brain child of General
Electric in the 1960’s as a way to sell more refrigerators. Planned
obsolescence is written into our DNA. These miraculous eyes, that give us
such an extraordinary amount of information, will, through the natural
process of aging, start to break apart.

Fundamentalists call it an “intelligent design.” But I can’t say that the
wisdom and the intelligence of this particular aspect of life is accessible
to me at the moment. Perhaps the reason I can’t see how wonderful it is that
our bodies are programmed to disintegrate is because of all the “floaters”
that have settled at the very center of my vision.

There are many true believers who are convinced that with the right diet and
a vigorous exercise plan time can be, if not defeated, then at least
seriously contained. And while I know that statistics will support this
stance, when it comes to any particular individual, you take your chances.
The healthiest, most diet conscious and most seriously athletic colleague I
ever had died swiftly at a very young age.

Time can swallow us whole. It can also bless us and restore us to health.
Time is such an elusive and mysterious gift. When we are discouraged or
impatient, time can seem to be a burden that moves as slow as molasses. When
we are happy or enjoying the companionship of good friends, time can pass so
swiftly that we can’t imagine where it has gone.

The “tincture of time” is the medicine dispensed to every child of God.
Sometimes holding us up. Sometimes challenging us in ways that appear to us
to be beyond our strength. Eastern religions claim that time is ultimately
an illusion. Puritans warn us not to waste a minute of it. In some seasons
of our lives it can appear to be a limitless resource. At other moments it
can seem to be a fleeting and infinitely precious commodity.

Religious communities exist within the “tincture of time.” First Unitarian,
having been around for over 222 years, has cared for souls in times of peace
and in times of war. It has stayed remarkably steady in its insistence that
every individual must search for truth and meaning in this life. The “holy”
moment is not understood as the moment of death or the moment of conversion
to a particular religious dogma. Instead, the “holiest of the holies” is
right now. This is the day the Lord made. This is the opportunity we are
given to offer help and compassion to a neighbor; to seek to live in right
relationship with one another; to find what is real and imperishable in the
midst of a transitory and changing world.

In my experience, the medicinal healing prescription of the “tincture of
time” will occasionally be appreciated, sometime swallowed with the greatest
reluctance and usually taken completely for granted.

However you are seeing it, may the healing blessing of time find its way to
your door. And as we take our daily dose, may we find a way to say “thank
you.”

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