Memories have a life force associated with them. A life force which is amplified by the depth of the emotion you would have felt at the moment when a mundane activity exalts itself to become a memory – something to be carried with you for a lifetime, something when remembered later in life will bring you a feeling of nostalgia.
As my favorite timepiece the Timex Indiglo, one of the Bret Lee collection which was launched in the Nov of 2003 enters its 11th year on my wrist, never before have I felt the true meaning of the term 'keeping time' hit me. Come to think of it, isn't it true that timepieces don't tell you time, but they 'keep time'. They 'keep time' as you wait on the railway station, airport terminal or even as you countdown those final seconds waiting for the New Year with a loved one. They 'keep time' so that you can remember that time, weave stories about and around that time to be passed on to friends and even to generations to come.
For sometime now I have been dabbling with the idea of getting a new timepiece. But each time I check out the online stores and even finalize the timepiece I pause and reflect. Reflect on the fact that will this timepiece be able to 'keep time' the way my present timepiece has and make memories out of the mundane , the way my present timepiece has?
The answer to that one lies with 'Time', doesn't it?
P.S: Recently read the news that the Govt of India is finally pulling the plug on HMT watches. My dad owned a HMT and I remember being in awe of that watch compared to the itzy bitzy 'Disney Zap' watch which I had at that time. That analog watch with the steel belt was like a crown I coveted which would one day be passed on to me, after a 'coming of age' ceremony. That HMT watch lies in the locker of the family 'Godrej' almirah, I might just check on it one of these days, something to put right some wrongs of the years gone by; maybe.