This is my 12th post on David Appelbaum's book The Stop If you missed the first 11 go back to January 1 so you can follow the sequence.
Appelbaum says that we ordinarily view time as:
1. Sequence - one event follows the next event
2. Direction - past to future
3. A Quantity - either there isn't enough of it or there's too much
4. As Something Extraneous - being outside of time
With the stop we experience "an organic apprehenion of the present moment" - meaning that the intellect is not involved and so time is not something extrinsic to the current moment, but a quality of it. "The organism meets time as pulse, rhythm, and tempo. Time is a paramount practical concern that governs locomotion, coordination, and the manipulation of tools." So with the stop, rather than time, we have timing.
Every thing, process and event has many influences to which it responds with different rhythms or tempos. The stop and embodied perception disclose these to us. When we relate to the cosmos in this way "timing becomes the great hidden meaning. Who knows the timing of things holds the key to power." This can be easily seen at the ordinary level - the timing of a political message, the timing of a comedian's joke, the timing (or lack there of) on Dancing with the Stars.
According to Appelbaum the perception that shows me who I am operates through timing. I like this concept because it offers an interesting line-of-inquiry for self-observation. If I look for it, it seems that it should be fairly clear when my time is off and when it is on.
Photo Source: www.davidharbersundials.co.uk/
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