Farewell to the Time Lady

Copyright Ruth Lampert 2009


Last night we experienced a power outage – it was taken care of within the hour, but, every electric clock in the house needed to be changed..
I automatically reached for the phone to verify the correct time, and then I remembered – the Time Lady is long gone.

She was always there when I needed her. In tones that were clear, friendly, but never unctuous, she immediately gave me the information I needed. “At the tone,” the response came with a reliability seldom experienced in today’s hectic modern world, “the time will be…” and she would announce what the time would be, to the very second. Then a pleasant yet authoritative tone would sound, bringing a blissful sense of closure.
The argument I was having with whoever I was arguing about the exact time was solved.
The nagging suspicion that my watch needed cleaning was either confirmed or allayed.
If I was lonely, and just needed to hear a friendly voice, I could count on her.
She was the friend and counsel of my youth, the dependable helper of my middle and older years.
Now, she is gone. Sent away without fanfare or ceremony.
Well, time marches on, no pun intended. . I just hope what my computer says in tiny, silent, numbers at the bottom of the screen is correct. I did appreciate her while I had her, and I think she somehow knew, just as she always knew the correct time.