Measuring time in generic terms is meaningless.
"We're leaving in a few minutes!"
Okay, what's a few? That was a constant question for my mom. Or if I asked her what time it was and she would say, "Quarter to." QUARTER TO WHAT? If I don't know what hour we're in, how am I supposed to know what that means?
I was constantly frustrated by my mom's generalized descriptions of time when I was a wee lass. Thankfully, as I grew up, I learnt to understand what she meant (although if she still says, "Quarter to," I still respond with, "Quarter to what?!")
So, let's break it down:
A couple is clearly two, so a couple of minutes is two minutes.
A few, to me, always meant 3-4 because 3-4 is more than a couple which is two. . . except now there are such things as throuples so maybe we should be using that when we mean 3. "I'll be there in a throuple of minutes!" Yikes. Although, according to the dictionary, "few" means more than one, so it could be literally anything above one. Ugh.
"Several" has to mean seven or more, right? I mean it basically has the word "seven" in it. But if we go with my logic of "a few" meaning 3-4, then 5-6 get omitted. So, maybe "few" should be more like 3-6. Or we could start referring to 6 minutes as "half a dozen minutes." And now I want cookies.
Okay, these words are clearly meant to act as estimates rather than literal minutes, except I love exact numbers. I want to know how many minutes there are until we leave. Or just tell me the time and save yourself the trouble of doing the math! I love it when people say things like, "Okay, if it takes 10 minutes to get there and we need to get there by 12:30, then we should get off the couch at 12:00 so we can get our shoes on and head to the car and be there early." *Swoon*
The one that really bothers me, though, is "a while." How long is a while? A while indicates a significant period of time, but the significance of that time is wholly dependent on the individual. A "while" to me means at minimum a month. A "while" to someone else could mean two weeks. How are we supposed to know what "a while" means when it's arbitrary? Yes, time passes the same way every day, but people experience the passing of time differently. Why else could two people disagree on how long the day felt?
And then, if you say, "Just a little while longer," that changes the meaning completely (at least to me). "Just a little while longer," is like saying a few more minutes.
"We'll be in the store just a little while longer."
BUT, it could also be a comforting way of saying that things won't hurt forever.
"How long will I feel this way?"
"Just a little while longer, I promise." No one really knows how long that pain will last, but it's comforting to hear that it won't last forever. Adding the "just a little" softens the blow.
How long is a while? It's as long as that person wants it to be with a subtle nuance of hope attributed to it. It could be several months, but it won't be forever, or else, they would've said that, right? But what if you don't want to wait a while anymore? What if my "while" is done, but yours is not? I guess that's why we wait. I guess that's why we let go when we're done waiting.
"A while" is meaningless. The time it covers ranges from minutes to years. And yet, if you soften that blow, suddenly it means so much more.
Just a little while longer, I promise.
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