Superhumans, video games, and the now.

Riddle: Whenever you see the clock I am there, I follow you every step of your way, I only disappear once in a lifetime, what am I?

There’s a time and there’s a space, you occupy both.

I’m writing these words at 09:45 on March 21 / 2023, I’m writing them on my computer with my fingers. You see? Time and space; going further, I am writing this article at home, with my lovely cat on my right, listening to some good old songs.

It’s all a matter of time and space; there is no such thing as a good or bad time; there is only time. It will always be present marking your life, putting the rhythm of your life.

It’s a little different with space; you have complete control over where you want to be physical. You’re probably reading this article while sitting on your couch, thinking about something else you need to do later. Will this be a waste of your time? I hope not.

The now in videogames, the now in life.

There’s always so much to do in life, damn, I can think of more than 15 things I should do this week, in fact, in the next couple of days.

I bet you do, right? Ok, this is what happens in video games, a game gives you rules, a game gives you an environment, a game controls your thoughts in a good way, and most importantly, you control the game’s character.

You choose what to do in games, if you want to save someone, or you want to throw a grenade at the bad guys, it’s up to you. The one thing I am sure, your decision is based on what you think is the right thing to do.

You stick with your decision, and you move forward with no thoughts of what will it represent. You seize the moment and most importantly, you enjoy your time.

The truth about you and me, superhuman.

We usually believe that we have a lot of time and that we can clean the car, cook lunch, cook dinner, work, feed the pet, reply to emails, read for 30 minutes, watch two episodes of a TV show, post this on the blog, share it on Twitter, play the new game, and, to be funny, sleep at 22:00, so you can get up early the next day.

Of course, you can, you are a superhuman, as are we all, we have the power in our minds.

The problem is the following: The moment you start doing something, instantly you begin to think about the next thing you will do, then you get distracted, so you grab your phone and start looking at your social media or your favorite news magazine. And just that took you around 10 or 15 minutes. That’s the problem, distractions, and procrastination.

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The time division with the problem

  • 24 hours per day
  • 8 hours of sleep
  • 6 hours of work
  • 2 hours of cooking
  • 1.5 hours of eating
  • 30 minutes of reading
  • 2 hours of gaming (It’s a new game, so it’s gotta be more than that, right? Maybe 4? 😊)
  • 1.5 hours of Netflix (In most cases it’s more than that)
  • 1 hour of social media (Are you sure?)
  • 1 hour of messages and emails
  • 2 hours of family bonding
  • 1 hour of online courses
  • Total: 26+ hours

I mean, you can control your actions, not time. Let’s be real for a moment, you said you were going to read 30 minutes, and you start at 20:00. In your mind, this is what actually is happening: after this, I am going to play some of that great game, or I feel like having a pizza, maybe with a brownie for dessert?

You look at the clock, and it’s 20:07, you haven’t read anything, and it passed 7 minutes, and naturally, the show goes on. You know it happened again, now you started to think about what kind of post I should publish later, maybe a quote from my favorite author on Twitter? The clock is now 20:15, you read until 20:30, then you think, should I stop? You didn’t read a lot, and you couldn’t understand a lot of things. So you do the right thing and you start the process again. You finished reading at 21:02.

You lost 30 minutes, and you didn’t fully enjoy reading, and the thoughts you had before… are gone. Not only that, but you don’t remember them anymore. So naturally: We need to change this.

The present (The answer to the riddle)

It’s the now that matters, it’s the present that really exists, and it’s what you choose to do with your present that matters. Let’s seize everything we do, and let’s live with passion, we are alive, if you watch a movie, enjoy it to its fullest, if you read, imagine every single detail. If you get mad at something, be f*****g mad, and let it all out as long as you don’t hurt anyone, if you feel sad, cry, but cry the hell out of it.

“Yesterday is gone.
Tomorrow has not yet come.
We have only today.
Let us begin.”

– Mother Teresa

The past is not important, the future doesn’t exist, yes, you work and plan towards it.

The present, the present is now, and emotions are what make you a superhuman, nothing else does.

In the end, we are superhumans, we have the power, and we decide how to feel and what to do with our time and present.

Let’s live! Let’s feel! It’s a good life! YOUR ONLY ONE!