“It strikes! one, two,
Three, four, five, six. Enough, enough, dear watch,
Thy pulse hath beat enough. Now sleep and rest;
Would thou could’st make the time to do so too;
I’ll wind thee up no more.”
— Ben Jonson
After a combined total of twelve or so months living in London, it’s rather shocking I only just made it down to Brighton on Thursday for the first time (more about that trip–and an exciting giveaway–on Monday!).
In between the sunshine and the sea air and the thrill of a weekday escape, I was perhaps most excited about just having a few hours to do things I’m normally not able to: get lost in a good book (rather than read in fifteen-minute increments on the train to and from work), sketch, catch up on essays and short stories I’ve printed out, and walk merely for the sake of wandering–not because I have somewhere to be.
It was on Brighton’s famous pier, though, that I came across a collection of pocket watches for sale in a jeweler’s tucked away between a cafe and a candy shop. Something about the way they hung in the window, so still, so unique, got me thinking–wondering if life in London really doesn’t give me enough time for other creative pursuits–or if I simply don’t make the time. And so I love these words from Benjamin Disraeli:
But what minutes! Count them by sensation, and not by calendars, and each moment is a day.
I love this photo!