Can you remember how Christmas felt so far away each year as a kid? The excitement and wonder of the holidays always made it almost unbearable to wait a whole year for Christmas to arrive again. Yet as we grow older, it no longer feels quite so far away. We almost feel as if we were just in June, and then suddenly it’s October, and then you blink. Your Christmas tree is up, and the stores are filled with catchy (but also slightly annoying) Christmas music. This increase in the passage of time is not the loss of wonder at the season but instead has various scientific reasons. Let’s have a look at a couple of those.
All The Bells and Pine Trees
Snow gently capped the window still. Inside the house, the roaring fireplace kept the main room cozy and comfortable. The gigantic pine tree stood in the corner, decorated from top to bottom in colorful baubles. The twinkling lights only enhanced the already magical atmosphere. Seated on the floor at the coffee table, the three youngest cousins were having a spirited discussion about what they wanted for Christmas this year.
The youngest, Roslin, was entertaining the two older boys, Jake and Matthew, with a rapid-fire string of toy wishes. At six years old, Roslin still had the magical sparkle of excitement as she explained why she needed a new doll (her old one’s eyes did not close anymore). Or a new shop set (she lost the cash register on the pale blue one she got for her birthday). Or a magical unicorn puzzle (she has never had one, you see) will all do perfectly well. Jake, the eight-year-old, had been waiting for his cousin to take a breath so he could loudly announce that nothing but a shiny black train set (with tracks and working cars) would do and that he had told Santa just that in his letter.
Matthew smiled at his cousin’s evident excitement and nervousness at hoping for presents. At ten years old, he was caught on the brink of no longer believing in Santa but desperately wanted a magical holiday filled with wonder and gifts. His mother had made some dire consequences known if he ruined Christmas for the younger kids by telling them about Santa. These consequences included the loss of his PlayStation, so Matthew smiled what he hoped to be an indulgent smile at his cousins while keeping his mouth firmly shut.
Directly across from the youngsters sat the two older cousins in their teens. Glued to their phones, they only emerged with an eye-roll and muttered “kids” ever so often. Shaking their heads as if they contained the wisdom of the ages between them, they returned with a bored look at their phones. Matthew tried to stop his irritation at being included in their muttered disdain. He was not, after all, under the impression that Santa would bring him any gifts. Opening his mouth to tell off his older cousins and their supposed superiority, Matthew was spared losing his PlayStation by his youngest uncle, Sebastian, joining the fray.
“Not so long ago, you were just as excited as them, you know. If you keep this up, you will age prematurely to become just as boring and decrepit as the adults.” Sebastian said to the two teenagers on the couch.
“Decrepit? Speak for yourself!” his sister, Janessa, flapped from the side. “You were just complaining about how you were just on summer holiday, and now you have to freeze your ba… I mean, saying how it’s now cold and Christmas already,” she finished lamely.
“Careful on the eggnog there, Sis,” Sebastian replied with a wink to his sister’s scowl.
Passage Of Time
“Well, that makes sense as time goes quicker when you are older.” Jessica, the oldest and normally quietest of the teenagers, said to the two quarreling siblings.
“What?” Sebastian asked blankly, blinking in confusion.
“You know, it is why older people will often complain about how quickly children age or that they just packed away the Easter stuff just to take out the Christmas decorations. Scientific evidence shows that older people value a year less than an eight-year-old would as for an eight your old, a year would be one eight of their life, while for a year old a year would be one-fiftieth of their life.”
“So the ratio of years passed makes a year feel less significant for an older person, so they don’t notice it is going by, and it then feels quicker?” Janessa asked her daughter.
“Yes, but also because we use memories to tell the passage of time.”
“How do you know all this?” Sebastian asked Jessica, still frowning and trying to understand what she said.
“I read it somewhere.”
“You read it somewhere?” he asked, completely baffled as he glanced at the younger boys with an expression that clearly read, “Girls?!”
“Yes, I read it. You should try it sometime.” the flinty reply came.
Suppressing a chuckle, Janessa interfered and enquired how memories work as time measurements.
“The more events that happen and create worthwhile memories, the longer time feels. For adults, many things happen that are very routine and everyday stuff. At the same time, kids learn new skills and information daily, making it feel longer for them than adults who do the same daily tasks every day.
“Also, the more stress you have and the more planning you need to do, the quicker it feels like time is passing.”
Slow Down The Race
“So for me not to feel like an old man, I need to learn new things and not stress too much?” Sebastian asked with a slight twist to his lips as he sipped his brandy.
“Well, I don’t know if that would work, but I guess you could try,” Jessica answered.
“But why would you want to?” Arthur asked beside Jessica. “Learning new things daily can be cool, but less stress would most likely mean someone else was making decisions for you, and you would be back to asking permission for everything,” Arthur said sagely.
Sebastian stared at the two teenagers with obvious discontent. “It was better when the two of you did not speak,” he said with a small wink to ease the sting. “I shall return to those of my own defeated age and wallow in their wisdom,” Sebastian said with a dramatic swish as he turned around and returned to the kitchen. The two teenagers glanced at each other before laughing, just as the younger kids collapsed in helpless giggles.
“Perhaps Uncle Sebastian needs more toys. He can have my old doll if I get a new one.” Roslin offered with the air of one being enormously generous before jumping up and daring her cousins to race to the back porch.
