Time is of the Essence

By Jamie Perkins

As a full-time working mom, and part-time grad student, I feel my time is scheduled to the minute. My days start early, end late, and are packed in between. Coming to Italy has allowed me to take a step back and realize that the concept of time varies greatly between different cultures.

One of the many things I have come to appreciate about the Italian lifestyle is its relationship with time. How often have we heard the terms, “time is money”, “don’t waste time”, “budget your time”? These sayings are relatively unheard of in Italy as there is no such thing as wasting time. In fact, there is very little sense of urgency at all in Italian culture. The Cagliese have a healthy appreciation of time; one in which is savored, not stressed.

This took a little getting use to.

I set up an interview with one of the chefs in Cagli for my story. He told me to come by the restaurant at 7:00 pm on a particular evening with the translator so I could talk to him before dinner service. I planned to meet the translator in the piazza a few minutes before 7:00 so we could walk over to the restaurant together. I started to get a little nervous when 7:00 rolled around and she hadn’t arrived.

I wanted to make a good impression on the chef, and show him I was serious about my project. I also knew he needed to open his restaurant to customers after our interview, and I wanted to make sure he knew I valued his time. So imagine my surprise with the translator arrived late without a care in the world. All was fine, and even though we were late, the chef didn’t seem to mind.

As I plan to return home, I hope I am able to bring the “domani” culture back with me. I know I will be returning to deadlines, time-management, and multi-tasking, but hopefully I will have a better sense of balance as I think about how I spend my time.