So is it possible one is effect and the other is cause?

In our tactile, object oriented view, presumably the noun is cause and the verb is effect, but what if it is the other way around.

We do seem to spend our lives running in circles, looking for the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

As you say, you can't see any point in my observations.

That's the problem with treating time as anything more than just a measure and effect of activity, like temperature. That our sequential thought process naturally latches onto, thinking/hoping it is some deeper dimension, going toward some future ideal. We miss a lot, chasing after our various gods.