The meaning of TIME

When I was little, I use to watch my late grandmother winding an old wooden grandfather clock with a white clock face every few days. It can be mesmerising at times to just sit and watch the pendulum swinging from left to right to left. When I recall that clock, I can still hear the sound it my head.. tick tock tick tock tick tock. Since the clock is in my grandmother's room, she would look at it before leaving the room.

Before my grandmother winds the clock up, she would first stop the clock's pendulum and proceed with inserting a special key into a small little hole and start turning it anti clock wise. I not sure how many turns she made but I can hear the clicking mechanism made. Once she have done so, she will swing the pendulum and clock resumes it's movement.

Clock is an instrument that shows the passing of time. We all have heard the phrase" Time waits for no one" Indeed it is true. I realise that we all give different meaning to time. Especially in the city time seems to fly past us quickly. We are so often busy with chores and events, we are not aware of the passing of time. However if we are sick and lying in bed, the clock seems to tick away slowly and painfully. We become very conscious of the minute hand.

When I was visiting my auntie in the Kampung (countryside) back in the 80's, Time seems to stood still. There was no TV only the music being played from the radio, Some houses between each other is nearly a mile apart. In the night, I would sit in the veranda enjoying the cool night breeze and listening to my mother exchanging stories with my aunt. Though it is pitch dark with minimal lighting in the area, I can hear the neighbours talking even though the house way down the gravel road. Today, all this have change, they have installed cable TV which show 24 hours television. There goes the peaceful and tranquil environment.

I want to share this poem taken from a passage in the bible.


To Everything There is a Season

To everything there is a season. A time for every purpose under Heaven.

A time to be born and a time to die

A time to plant and a time to pluck what is planted

A time to kill and a time to heal

A time to break down and a time to build up

A time to cast away stones and a time to gather stones

A time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing

A time to gain and a time to lose

A time to keep and a time to cast away

A time to tear and a time to sew

A time to keep silence and a time to speak

A time of love and a time of hate

A time of war and a time of peace


Ecclesiastes 3: 1-8

This poem is meaningful to me, because it reminds me that there is time for everything.The most precious gift a man has, is time. We can never get it back because the clock keeps on ticking. Tick- Tock, Tick -Tock ,Tick Tock.