In Between Times

For someone who has not given much regard to the passing of a year and the birth of a new one, I am thinking a lot about time related matters at the moment.
It occurred to me recently that a life portrayal is so often just a highlights package.  What gets failed to be mentioned is the “in between” times.  The weeks, months, and years it takes for someone to become what they become and do what they do.
I was thinking about the highlights in my life.  There were personal achievements like passing grade 12, getting a diploma, leading an organization, working to achieve a goal at work.  Yet to me these highlights matter less than the people highlights.  Getting together with friends for state of origin, making a difference for the better in another’s life, sharing an experience with others.
Most books are written highlighting the highlights.  I do not necessarily think that is a bad thing. I like most want to “get to the good bit.”  But I think it is the “in between” times that determine the highlights.
It is a well-worn cliché that no one on their death bed ever wished they had spent more time at the office.  It is the people highlights that matter most.  Spending time with the kids or wife or others.  So often it is thought of as an either/or.  Yet it is not.  A balanced life balances family, others and career.
At the end of the day it is what I do with the “in between” times that determines the highlights.  I can live for myself, and the highlights can be personal achievements gained by spending most of my “in between” times achieving  to the benefit of myself and maybe my bottom line.  Or I can live for others.  But I do not believe it is a matter of either/or.
To me good “in between” times that are not based on either/or but both, make the highlight package so much better.