People, Friends and Time

As life advances, the time remaining diminishes.

Therefore, those parts of our days that are free from duties & prior obligations and can be spent completely for ourselves are precious. 

And very strict rules must be created for these special slices of time so that we maximise the joys and satisfactions from these days. 

So  I spend those moments like a miser spends his coins. 

The experience must be worth it: Friedrich Nietzsche’s quote: “I hate who steals my solitude without in exchange offering me true company”

Bonding. Stimulation. Laughter. Warmth. Inspiration. Fun.

I must get at least a little of at least one of these in exchange for the currency of ‘time’ spent on the experience. 

And there are enough interesting people in the world to be tapped for at least one good conversation. Especially in cultures where speaking to strangers is not looked upon with suspicion. Where sharing food and stories with strangers is a routine experience. 

But sometimes, none can be found. 

So what then? How to spend that currency – which unfortunately is not bankable – we cannot put away 3 hours from 10th of January to spend 2 months later. 

So then when I have that time to spend, I find an author that engages – and make a friend of that person. A one-way “friendship”.

The content of the book, the story itself, however casually written can be exciting. Or if it is an idea that’s new to me it can be engaging. The precise efficiency of words, the insight into the subject, the eking out of subtle nuances, the exploration of new emotions .. all these are bonuses. 

Just as we have many friends, I engage with 2-3 books simultaneously. Simply because of the variety and novelty the multiplicity offers. Pick up one, read a few pages – put it down before reading begins to get weighty and burdensome and maybe come back to it a few days later. The result is that seeing one of these books waiting on the corner table gives me mild pleasant sense of anticipation.

And then, when I approach the end, I begin to dread the idea that I will now have finished this book and it will leave my life forever. There’s one book “Yuganta” that I started in maybe 2012 and deliberately have not finished reading after the 60% mark simply because of this dread. Irrational right? 

Also, the other odd thing I realise is that most books that I have read recently were published about a hundred years ago. Saratchandra, Dostoevsky, Adam Smith, Carl von Clasuewitz, Wilfred Thesiger, Somerset Maughm, Eric Hoffer, Freya Stark, Moorcroft.

A bit odd that all these ‘friends’ I make are from a different time era! 

But then they offer such matchless spectacular ideas that I remain addicted to old people. 

At the moment, I have a dozen books waiting to be finished. Will I finish them will I not …

If I were to learn from my son, I would discipline myself to read at least a few pages every day. Every single day.

But then the goal is not to ‘finish a book’ – it is to entertain the mind and to enjoy the way time is spent.

That freedom to choose how to spend my most precious currency – at least in a few pockets of time – is my greatest luxury.

***

jaina mishra

1 Feb 2026

Picture titled “Ready to ride into the adventures of other people from decades ago“