{"id":23361,"date":"2020-05-20T21:13:59","date_gmt":"2020-05-20T19:13:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.com\/zimbabwe\/?p=23361"},"modified":"2020-05-20T21:13:59","modified_gmt":"2020-05-20T19:13:59","slug":"dont-kill-the-time-spend-it-phoning-granny","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/dont-kill-the-time-spend-it-phoning-granny","title":{"rendered":"Don\u2019t kill the time, spend it phoning granny"},"content":{"rendered":"

IT is extraordinary that a government can interfere in the private lives of its citizens so massively, as it does just now in counteracting the COVID-19 epidemic. People cannot contact their old parents and grandparents. Children cannot go to school.<\/span><\/p>\n

Ask people in the Mbare flats how they like the idea. They will stare at you uncomprehendingly. Would children accept the necessary discipline to make such a \u201cschool\u201d between sofa and cooking pots work?<\/p>\n

Many of us dream of having \u201cplenty of time\u201d to do what they have always wanted to do, but did not manage in crowded timetables. I may have a still serviceable bicycle in the basement, if only I had the time to fix it.<\/p>\n

Somebody else has for a long time been wanting to repaint the walls of the staircase, of the kitchen and bedrooms. Now is the time to do it, provided he finds a shop where to buy the paint and brushes, and has a stepladder.<\/p>\n

Maybe parents, both working, have long felt that they had not enough time to spend with their children. Now is the great opportunity. Both parents and children are barred from leaving their home.<\/p>\n

You do not know why your daughter has so poor marks in maths? Now is the opportune moment: tell her she needs extra lessons in maths. You will sit down with her and go through her recent homework which looks like a feast in red, with the teacher\u2019s red pencil leaving marks all over the pages.<\/p>\n

Time is precious. Do not waste it. Unfortunately, using time profitably and responsibly is not part of our traditional culture. \u201cTime management\u201d is an art and a skill. Have we never been taught how to make use of time, treating every moment as a valuable asset, productive and precious?<\/p>\n

There are occupations which are just not worth it. There are television programmes which are stultifying rather than educative. Children have been sent to school to learn reading and writing, but now, at the end of it, they do neither.<\/p>\n

Could we use this sudden gift we never asked for, the free time coming with this \u201chouse arrest\u201d, to revive our \u201creading culture\u201d?<\/p>\n

Are there no books in the house that I always wanted to read, but never had the time to enjoy and share with the family?<\/p>\n

My elder sister is now an old lady, but she still loves her garden and spends time there in springtime, planting flowers, and all kinds of vegetables. Can you not go to your little field nearby and be a \u201cviral farmer\u201d?<\/p>\n

Maybe you are a student of the Bible. This \u201cbook of books\u201d, a library rather than a mere book, takes time to read, to absorb and make your mental and spiritual property.<\/p>\n

Have you ever read the Book of Psalms from start to finish? It is a prayer book and gives you words with which to address your Lord and Creator. Select what speaks to you, enlightens, encourages and comforts you.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Lord is my shepherd\u201d (Psalm 23) you may want to learn by heart and have ready to recite whenever you \u201cwalk through a valley of darkness\u201d to give you light and comfort. \u201cOut of the depths I call to you, Lord; \/Lord hear my cry!\u201d (Ps. 130) is just right at this time of misfortune. \u2014 The Gospel of St Mark is short and yet rich. We should receive it as a valuable gift with both hands. Now we have the time for \u201cfaith in the gospel\u201d (Mk 1:15).<\/p>\n

Some of us may want to \u201ckill time\u201d by doing nothing. Time is dear. Do we really want to throw it away?<\/p>\n

And yet we knew how to use time well. We used to travel far and wide to meet our sick family members. There are old parents and grandparents who are missing us. \u201cSocial distancing\u201d forbids us to go and see them in their homes now, to embrace and hug them.<\/p>\n

Our children have smartphones which we regard as useless luxury, for entertainment and play only. Now is the time to use them for charity, for showing compassion and confirming our love for the elderly locked away, who long to see us.<\/p>\n

Getting in touch with the lonely and breaking down their isolation by phone at least is a wonderful medicine against their sadness and grief.<\/p>\n

It would be a pity if we were to \u201dkill the time\u201d of our \u201clockdowns\u201d; may it become a time of consolation and support for those we love.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

IT is extraordinary that a government can interfere in the private lives of its citizens so massively, as it does just now in counteracting the COVID-19 epidemic. People cannot contact their old parents and grandparents. Children cannot go to school. Ask people in the Mbare flats how they like the idea. They will stare at […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":84,"featured_media":19034,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3,7],"tags":[1279,1250],"class_list":["post-23361","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-all-news","category-files","tag-coronavirus-in-zimbabwe","tag-mbare"],"yoast_head":"\nDon\u2019t kill the time, spend it phoning granny - zimbabwe<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"IT is extraordinary that a government can interfere in the private lives of its citizens so massively, as it does just now in counteracting the COVID-19\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/dont-kill-the-time-spend-it-phoning-granny\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Don\u2019t kill the time, spend it phoning granny\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"IT is extraordinary that a government can interfere in the private lives of its citizens so massively, as it does just now in counteracting the COVID-19\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/dont-kill-the-time-spend-it-phoning-granny\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"zimbabwe\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-05-20T19:13:59+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/sites\/14\/2020\/02\/Love.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"797\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"553\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"cfeditoren\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/dont-kill-the-time-spend-it-phoning-granny#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/dont-kill-the-time-spend-it-phoning-granny\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"cfeditoren\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/#\/schema\/person\/068c7ab4e9634ae78ec5d54ec46598bb\"},\"headline\":\"Don\u2019t kill the time, spend it phoning granny\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-05-20T19:13:59+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/dont-kill-the-time-spend-it-phoning-granny\"},\"wordCount\":761,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/dont-kill-the-time-spend-it-phoning-granny#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/static.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/sites\/14\/2020\/02\/Love.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"coronavirus in Zimbabwe\",\"Mbare\"],\"articleSection\":[\"all news\",\"files\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/dont-kill-the-time-spend-it-phoning-granny#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/dont-kill-the-time-spend-it-phoning-granny\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.africa-press.net\/zimbabwe\/all-news\/dont-kill-the-time-spend-it-phoning-granny\",\"name\":\"Don\u2019t kill the time, spend it phoning granny - 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