Not long ago I was speaking to a friend, discussing a trip I was contemplating later in the year. I was questioned closely about where I was going, when I was going, how far and for how long. In short, what was my plan of action. To most of the questions I gave only the most vague and evasive replies and felt I had successfully wriggled out of committing myself to anything definite and escaped another inquisition. But the next question was too direct and had me cornered; should I tell a porker or admit that, in reality, I had no plan at all. My conscience would not spare me and the truth was out. My interrogator was amazed, outraged, shocked!
How could one go through life without knowing what was round the next corner. Surely one required adequate notice of life’s ups and downs to deal with them adequately. I was then treated to an ear-bending homily impressing upon me the importance of keeping diaries up to date and extolling the virtues of Year Planners, followed by a didactic discourse on the comparative powers of online calendars, electronic reminders and organisers. I was urged to mend my slothful ways, embrace the New Jerusalem and be saved. Sensing she had gained a momentary advantage, she seized the high-ground and pressed home her point, quoting from her own diaries, telling me how she knew who she would be meeting, at what time, on what day, where and what the meeting was all about. Appointments with the dentist, the hairdresser, manicurist, chiropodist and various other white-coated spectres were honed down to the nanosecond. Did she also have an appointment with the undertaker? Had she booked the black stallions and carriage? I was too afraid of the possible answers to ask. She could predict every event for the next six months. And beyond.
Recovering my composure, I wondered what sort of future, and present, this was. Has spontaneity gone out of fashion, or have we just forgotten how to spell it? What is the point of attending a meeting which you already know everything about including the probable outcome? Is there really any challenge or fun in leading a pre-planned life? More to the point, is there sufficient time in the day to both plan and live? I considered this point very carefully, very carefully coming to the conclusion that there isn’t. Planning is for administrators – for pen-pushers. Filling in Year Planners, electronic diaries and Psion notepads is for managers and other writers of fiction. S.S.A.D.M., T.Q.M., B.S.5750, ISO 9001 are products of Virtual Reality and are the property of ivory tower dwellers. They can keep them.
Life isn’t measured by British Standards, nature isn’t governed by statutory law. Living is for those of action, not words.
By Clive A. Simpson