“Time flies as you grow older.” A phrase I have been aware of since I was a child, but never really understood until now.

Time runs different because our perception of it grows, relative to age. When I was in grade school, eight hours felt like a whole day, nine months felt like decades. I was eager to count to the next one. Now, a week goes by in a blink and the years have started to blur together.

Sometimes, while I’m in the middle of doing something- that mixed feeling of amazement and existential crisis hits me. Wow, it’s really been a decade since Osama Bin Laden was killed, or since Prince William & Kate got married. And twenty years since 9/11, and release of the 1st generation iPod!

Time makes me feel anonymous.

I would like to say that in my lifetime so far I’ve done a lot of things, met a lot of people, and acquired a good amount of knowledge. But as the world gets bigger, I feel smaller.

Sometimes it feels like the things I do aren’t noticed. Not like anyone is purposely ignoring me; there are just too many things happening in the world for me to stand out. It’s a funny paradox; I am the center of the universe- my universe, but so are the other 7 billion people on this planet.

I think feeling, being anonymous can be good though. I feel like I’m watching life through a screen. And by being on the outside, I can see certain things with a different perspective. One of my favorite activities is exploring nature. Being anonymous out there makes me feel more connected to this world more than anything else.