Giving fifteen minutes to someone who needs presence

In a full day, fifteen minutes seem like a small thing. Yet it is often the fifteen minutes we truly offer (phone put away, eye to eye) that stay etched in the other person's memory. This quest invites you to block out fifteen minutes today for someone who needs presence.

What it looks like in your day

Choose the person. Who around you needs someone to give them time? A friend going through a hard period, an elderly person, an isolated colleague, a teenager who has gone quiet, a spouse you now talk to only about logistics.

Block the time. Put it in your calendar, like an appointment. Fifteen minutes without interruption: you set the phone aside, you sit down, you don't watch the clock.

Be fully there. It is not about filling the time with words, but about making your presence available. Ask an open question ("How are you doing these days?"), then listen. If the person doesn't want to talk, stay with them in the silence, with a coffee or a walk.

End simply. "Thank you for taking this time with me." You can offer to do it again, or not.

Here are some ways to give fifteen minutes: a walk around the neighborhood, a coffee downstairs from the office, a call with no screen, an afternoon snack with a child, a moment at an elderly person's window.

If you are in a hurry, remember that this is exactly the time we give most rarely. If you are shy, this short format is ideal: it doesn't require big words. If your day is overflowing, spot a moment that already exists, such as a commute or a break, and turn it into presence.

What the Bible says

Paul invites believers to manage their time wisely:

“See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise, Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.”

"Redeeming the time": seize the moments that pass and direct them toward what matters. Time given to a person is one of the best uses. The Gospel of Mark shows Jesus at work. He is on his way to heal the daughter of a synagogue ruler when a sick woman touches his garment. He stops, despite the urgency:

“And Jesus, immediately knowing in himself that virtue had gone out of him, turned him about in the press, and said, Who touched my clothes? And his disciples said unto him, Thou seest the multitude thronging thee, and sayest thou, Who touched me? And he looked round about to see her that had done this thing. But the woman fearing and trembling, knowing what was done in her, came and fell down before him, and told him all the truth. And he said unto her, Daughter, thy faith hath made thee whole; go in peace, and be whole of thy plague.”

Jesus doesn't go on his way: he takes the time to look for who touched him, to listen to "all the truth" of this woman, and to say a word that lifts her up. For him, a person more invisible than the others was worth the interruption.

Pitfalls to avoid

Looking at your phone. A screen, even turned over on the table, says: "You are not my priority." Put it out of sight.

Filling the time with advice. These fifteen minutes are not a coaching session. Listen, walk alongside, don't solve.

Trying to say everything. Fifteen minutes is not enough to deal with a whole life. Accept making only a beginning.

Feeling guilty for not doing more. Fifteen minutes given are better than two hours promised and never kept.

Forgetting to come back. If the person needs it, schedule another time. An occasional presence can become a lasting bond.

Today, choose one person. Block fifteen minutes in your calendar and be fully there.