My Wood Watch by Jord and a Sunday Epiphany

My Wood Watch by Jord and a Sunday Epiphany
I was around 10 when I first asked my mom why she?d never wear a watch. She?d receive a watch for her birthday and always leave it gather dust in some cupboard in our flat.
My straightforward question evoked an extraordinary answer.
?Well, Antoinette, no watch to my taste?
I thought she was joking; it turns out she wasn?t.‘Ely’ Wood Watch by Jord (here)
?Antoinette, the only watch I?d ever wear is the one that doesn?t tick. And if it doesn?t tick ? it won?t be a watch, would it??
Years have passed since we had that conversation; years during which I?ve become incredibly conscious of the fleetness of time. And without ever opening up the subject again, I silently came to terms with the meaning behind her words.
We shared the same fear: the fear of time. The fear that once a moment?s gone, we wouldn’t be able to ?turn back the clock.?
In contrast to her, I do wear watches. I actually obtained my first a few years back, and I can?t recall, even one time, where it?s showed the correct time. I guess similarly to her, I?ve been repressing my ?fear of time?, silently protesting against the one single thing that I couldn?t control.
Since I moved to Copenhagen I?ve been spending much more time alone, leading these crazy inner dialogues with myself. As I was doing precisely that earlier today at the store, while substituting one of my colleagues, when I heard a cheerful ?Hey there?. I looked up and saw her smiling at me. She was looking for a perfume.
?A travel-size perfume?, she added.
I picked a few of my favorite scents to only find out that we shared the same taste.
And just as we were laughing at a joke, a song by Coldplay came on ? and with it another topic for conversation.
?I love the Body Shop, you know, but we don?t have it back home?.
?Where?s home?? yep, me being more than curious again.
?Bulgaria? she uttered.
My reaction said it all.
We burst into laughter and switched to our mother language.
It probably seems quite mundane ? meeting someone from your home town, while you?re in another country. Well, if you?re an American or English ? or in fact ? German, French, Spanish ? yep, it is. But Bulgarians ? well, due to quite a few historical + economic factors ? Bulgarians don?t fit the stereotypical idea of a ?tourist?, and if they travel ? Scandinavia wouldn’t really be their first choice.
But, okay, let?s say that this situation wasn?t weird at all. And as I was just about to stick my hand to introduce myself, I heard my name rolling out of her mouth.
And then came the shocked gasps and sighs. We both had the same name ?Antoaneta?, a name that?s not that popular at all. You know, you meet up a ?Sarah? quite often, but Anoushka ?maybe a few times in a lifetime. So, you know what I mean.
Why am I telling you that story? I took that peculiar encounter as a sign. A sign that I was at the right place, at the right ?time?.
And during that few minutes we spent talking, I couldn?t care less what the date and exact time was.
On my way home, mulling over the situation, I had an epiphany.
I have no control over time, sure thing. But similarly, you have no control over a boat without any ropes. But would you ever go deep into the sea chilling on a boat without a rope?
So it?s really entirely up to me to decide whether I?d let myself be terrified by the fleetness of time and whether I?ve made the right choice to move to Denmark, or whether I?d accept that the rope of life is in my hands and it?s up to me to wildly ride it.
So, here I?m wearing my handcrafted wood watch by ?Jord?, whose time I?d also decided to haphazardly change. I choose to wear it as a beautiful accessory, rather than a tool to help me ?be on time?. With all modern gadgets ? we?ve become obsessed with checking the time and constantly rushing. However, reminding yourself that there is no ?right time? to do something exciting, to meet someone extraordinary, and actually have the guts to pursue your dreams… is what remains pretty rare.
The ?wood? of which my watch is made reminds me of my desire to get back to the basics, to get closer to nature, and try distance myself from vanity.
The random time it shows reminds me to be ?present now? and to keep digging deep until I reach my true self.
Am I still scared of time? Saying no would be a lie, but if anything, rather than terrified now I?m pretty excited. Excited coz I know that the rope of life is in my hand, and it?s my decision, where the boat will take me. Meanwhile, I will keep on looking for signs and smile at life every time I come across one.
xoxo
A.
Wooden Watches