Sunday, March 11, 2018

Reflections on Daylight Savings Time

11 of 31 - SOLSC 2018


The Slice of Life March Challenge is hosted by Two Writing Teachers and part of the Slice of Life Story Challenge that takes place each Tuesday throughout the year and everyday in March. It is a supportive (and awesome!) community of those trying their hand at writing and encouraging others in their writing. Join us!


There are many reasons that one might have varying opinions regarding Daylight Savings Time. 

How far north or south you live impacts your thoughts. The closer to the equator you life the more consistent the length of your days is, therefore the change does not have the same impact it does for those who live closer to the poles. So is it a surprise that Hawaii, the state closest to the equator, last changed in 1945 - long before they were a state? (Florida is legislating a change to Standard Time, though there are legal challenges.)

If you have ever lived somewhere that doesn't change the clock on two random days per year, your opinion will change. Once you realize that life does go on without the major interruption imposed by humans, you may just find the lack of change refreshing.

What you believe to be the origins and reason for the practice impact one's thoughts. I know that reading this New York Times article challenged what I had believed for multiple decades. Had you been told it had to do with farming? I sure had.

Then there are the years we have lived in places that could have three different dates to change their clocks - all within the span of one weekend - for bordering countries. (Managing public transport was the biggest challenge to navigating that one!)

Currently the greatest change impacting my life is how I play "Time Zone Bingo". I have regular meetings across the globe. As we enter the season of time changes I have to double and triple check when each place does or doesn't change their clocks.

And finally, as I sat down to write this, I realized that I had never noticed that light takes hold over darkness during Lent, when we are preparing for Light to overcome.

13 comments:

  1. Always wondered who were those folks who posted right after midnight. I have mostly striving to get it done before midnight. It feels calmer this way. Who knew? Nice ponderings above. I too am ready for the light even with an hour less to sleep.

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  2. I am one of those after midnight posters. I prefer that to getting up early now that I am retired. Call me lazy, but it works for me. My daughter, who hates the darkness and dreariness of winter lives for Daylight Savings Time. She'd be much happier in one of those consistent places!

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  3. I am one of those living in a place where we do not change clocks and I am confused for a few weeks each October and March as to what time it is wherever the people I want to contact are. Living in Mumbai years ago it was especially interesting to be in a place where it was x1/2 hours different- that extra half hour was always hard!

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  4. Living close to the equator, Slice opens for me at 12 noon. I haven't yet been able to have a post ready for that time. Perhaps in the holidays I will. I do miss the change of time and the anticipation of new seasons though. Hopefully, time-zone bingo runs smoothly for you this year.

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  5. And how many of us who do experience DST have shown up too late or too early for some commitment or another? The year I lived in Scotland doing a Jr Year Abroad program, my parents visited for Easter week. The time change lined up with the holiday that year and we nearly missed last call for Easter dinner at a local pub as we all slept in and forgot about the time change. Every spring I think of that Easter and how we had to run for our lamb dinner!

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  6. And when you have kids, DST is it’s own kind of special torture.

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  7. It seems to me like DST is outdated. It's amazing the problems I see it cause now. Great reflection!

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  8. Time Zone Bingo, oh my! The world may be flat, but we still live on different time schedules... Love your observation about light taking hold over dark during Lent. What a great symbol of Christ's power.

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  9. And how can a ONE hour time change make you feel so dang tired for an entire week? The students are just as tired. I feel like the students need an entire week just to act normal again. However, I really do love it being light an hour later. It's a conundrum.

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  10. I for one have decided that we have outlived the reason to change the time. Lets just have one and leave it at that.

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  11. I have to admit that I have wondered what it would be like not to change. My husband hates it so much, but I have to admit that I actually like the change.

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  12. I enjoy more hours of daylight, however losing an hour in the moment always seems tough!

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  13. Hmm...interesting article, thanks for including that!

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