a clock with personality

It's not the sort of clock that would stand out in a crowd.  No one would make a lunge for it, heart racing, quickly checking the nearest mirror for messy hair or smudged lipstick. Wondering if this could be the event they've been awaiting, thanking whoever that they made the effort to visit John Lewis Partnership in miserable weather, when they could have stayed at home watching daytime telly.  Indeed not. This clock gives a new intensity to the word 'plain', improved only slightly by having its silver frame painted navy blue to match our bathroom accessories.

The clock hangs on the wall facing the end of the bath, and comfortable in the warmth,  I watch the second hand sliding round the face, while my mind floods with trivial thoughts.  And this  hitherto bland creature now reveals its personality.  Every minute or two, the second hand stops and reverses, before moving on.  I find myself watching for the next time this happens.

It occurs to me that perhaps the clock is teaching me something: the importance of not constantly rushing ahead, about taking a step backwards from time to time.

Character is more than skin-deep.  Hmm....

                                                          Jane