Time Marches On

Weekend Reads v. 29.8.2025

"Honey, time marches on and eventually you realize it's marchin' across your face."  - Truvy in Steel Magnolias

There’s a Crape Myrtle dotted with soft purple flowers in my parents’ backyard that feels a bit like an anchor in time to me. It was a small scrappy tree when it was planted back when I was in the midst of some period of schooling – high school, maybe? – and steadily grew while my family was rushing toward holidays and deadlines. I’ve never been very sentimental about trees, but this one is heavy with meaning for me.

Perhaps it’s because each time I catch this tree’s expansive size out of the corner of my eye, I am still surprised at the size of it. This tree has played a silent witness to my comings and goings all these years. It faithfully stands as a reminder that time cannot be contained. No matter how hard I might try to bend and shape time to my desires, time marches ahead. 

There are markers of time all around us. The young children in our lives serve as an accurate illustration of the unflinching progression of time. Children grow taller and more clever as the weeks and months pass by. These changes act as a mirror reflecting back to us the somber reality that we are getting slower and displaying more of the unhide-able and unmistakable hallmarks of An Older Person. Back-to-school photos are a particularly cruel exercise in the drastic change that befalls each child as they leap from adorable to awkward to stunning. These photos can also stir up reminders of what life was like at that age as we navigated the simultaneous thrill and terror that accompanies a growing independence. Those younger days feel like they are still within reach and yet the calendar confirms those years are now cataloged as vintage and nostalgic by everyone else. 

But here’s the thing about time. While you absolutely cannot go back, you can change your future. Just as that tiny Crepe Myrtle with the purple blooms determinedly grew in increments month after month, we can manifest small changes today that will result in magnificent proportions tomorrow. You cannot alter the past, but you absolutely can alter the present because you are the conductor of today.

These are things I tell myself as I embark on another year around the sun. Regret is a fool’s errand. Courage to take a step forward is a super power. Today really is a gift for all of us. 

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I tried the black lip balm from Finding Ferdinand, and it is fantastic! Highly recommend. 

An incomplete list of things Jane Austen disliked (ha!).

The rooms in this Notting Hill hotel feel a tiny bit like a Wes Anderson film. The restaurant and pub also look charming. And the rates aren’t sky high! Maybe a hotel to bookmark for our next trip to London?

And more hotel talk for you: this hotel in Milan is dreamy, and if you find yourself near Loch Ness in Scotland, The Lovat Hotel might be a fantastic place to stay.

This new landline phone for kids is a clever wink to a tin can. 

Gorgeous custom jewelry from Charleston, SC.

I’m still savoring summer, but when it comes time to embrace Autumn I’ll be cooking one or two of these incredible recipes in my crockpot. 

This novel set in Antarctica is getting rave reviews. Have you read it yet?

My favorite shop for stocking up on fun pantry and kitchen items now has a club. Each quarter, Big Night sends a box of curated goodies directly to your doorstep for your pantry or to satisfy all your hosting needs. It’s reeeeaaaaal hard to listen to my budget and say no to this one right now.

These tinned vegetables are intriguing. They appear to only be available in a few places in Northeastern U.S. states at the moment. 

Just when I thought nature couldn’t get more bizarre, these goliath frogs go and build their own ponds for their young.

Frustration may or may not have driven me to cry at work this week (ugh!), so this article about the hidden calculations that determine whether we will cry was especially interesting to me. 

“There is now a substantial research literature on tearing and crying, and the findings show that people cry precisely in these situations. For example, research shows that people are more likely to tear up when they feel they’re bearing heavier costs. Among nurses in Thailand, for instance, crying occurs more often when they are feeling overwhelmed by their caring responsibilities. Correspondingly, observers infer greater suffering from the presence of tears. In courtroom settings, for example, people are more likely to believe that tearful children – compared with non-tearful children – were sexually assaulted. Other research demonstrates the effect of interpersonal value. For instance, people tend to offer more support to tearful friends than to tearful strangers. Tearful individuals implicitly recognise this and tend not to cry as much in front of unresponsive audiences. For example, children are more likely to express sadness, including through tears, when they are near their parents than when they are with peers, regardless of how much time they spend with each group.” (Source)

A note about Gen Z’s toxic relationship with cheating. (Perhaps someone can write a piece about their toxic relationship with punctuation?)

Of course Tarta Gelantina’s beautiful home goods are designed in Barcelona. I’m a fan of these towels and these blankets.

And now I’m off to celebrate my birthday! Thank you for being here.

A quick note that there is an Amazon Affiliate link tucked away in this post. If you make a purchase — thank you! — I may earn a small commission.