We are notorious for being an island with its own sense of time, and there is a long-standing joke about GMT - 'Greek Maybe Time' - thanks to people's uncanny knack for turning up horrendously late. But despite common perception that it is just a characteristic of the laid-back, hot and lazy conditions of the island, it is actually a very selective habit, which makes it all the worse.
Let me elaborate. People on the island have to go to work at certain times. They have to take their children to school and pick them up. They have to open and close shops and the like. These are everyday practises where you simply cannot be lax and late (persistently). So we can surmise that people on the island are in fact very capable of arriving on time when they have to. There are some exceptions to this – such as waiting for a courier, internet provider or handyman to turn up – but this happens the world over, so we can discount these professions for the sake of today's argument!
The issue of lateness happens mostly for social functions, and this is where I personally feel that the term 'late' sometimes goes hand-in-hand with 'disrespect'. When it comes to being invited somewhere or attending something outside of the normal work/school routine, it is like there is an unwritten law that you need to add one or more hours to the time given for said event/social function. So it goes like this: if you have been invited to someone's house for lunch at 12pm, you must not turn up until at least 1.30pm.
If you have ever been on the receiving end of this, you will be aware of the frustration, anger and pain of having your lovingly prepared meal go cold and soggy. When we first moved to Cyprus, my poor mother would almost be in tears at the sight of her banquets sitting there whilst we waited for relatives to decide to turn up. She has adapted now and usually tells visitors to arrive half an hour before she actually wants them to, but it is still soul crushing to see all your hard efforts go seemingly unappreciated.
Before I truly wizened up to getting myself to functions on time alone (instead of arranging to car share with late friends), I missed many a christening or wedding church service. My friend at the time would always want to pick me up half an hour after the event had started, whilst I argued that there was no point in turning up late when the whole point was to witness the ceremony. Despite her promises to turn up on time, she always managed to end up even later than her initial suggested time, and the two of us would enter the church as the wedding or baptism service would be ending. I found it extremely disrespectful and have never, ever been late since.
Now a parent, I have found that one of the worse cases of liberal time keeping is children's birthday parties. Only last week we were invited to a play-place party at 11am. We were the first there and as if by magic, the minute the clock struck 12pm, the majority of the guests arrived!
So why do people feel the need to disregard time? It can't be to make an entrance, as you would have to be the only one arriving late to have an impact when you walk into the room! I am afraid I have absolutely no answer regarding this practise, but if you do get a dinner invite from me, please turn up on time or you might end up wearing your (cold and soggy) meal…
First appeared in The Cyprus Weekly, 27/03/15
