Traa dy liooar? What’s she on about? Has she hit the wrong keys on the keyboard and produced gobbledegook for a blog post?!
‘Traa dy liooar’ is a Manx phrase meaning ‘Time enough’. It rather sums up life on the Isle of Man, I’ve found. There’s time enough for all kinds of things, a different pace of life, a different way of looking at things on an island 32 miles long and about 14 miles wide.
Life at home, for many of us, is lived prestissimo – very quickly. Life on the Isle of Man seems decidedly andante – at a walking pace (and my kind of walking pace, I admit – not exactly fast!)
I spent the week watching seals from the shore:
And they didn’t seem to be doing an awful lot, either!
I watched them from a boat as well:
I watched them swim effortlessly, suddenly elegant in the water:
I meandered through glens:
I gazed at awesome rocks:
We searched for pebbles to throw into the sea:
I went for walks and spent time gazing at the scenery:
Everyone has different ideas about the ‘perfect holiday’. Some people like action and adventure. Some people like sun and sand. Some people like history and museums. The point of a holiday, though, is surely not just the change of scenery or the chance to experience different weather! On holiday, we live at a different pace to usual, often deliberately slowing down and reflecting. There is ‘time enough’ to do this on holiday; often we feel there is not time enough to do this in our everyday lives. We need, however, to slow down enough on a daily basis to listen to God and to spend time with Him and His word. Nothing else will do. He is the bread of life to us. May we all seek Him and learn to live at His tempo.