The universe is ticking probably a little over 13.8 billion years as per my watch which has 3 hands – a long thin one, a long thick hand and a small thick hand – each indicating and moving at a speed corresponding to what we call Time. Time has stopped is a relatively difficult concept to comprehend as time is relative to space… but time can stop in real scenarios, like when my watch stops moving, when the battery goes down or the winding coil unwinds to the fullest.

This is not the only instance when the clock has stopped for me… the first time it happened that I can recall was when I was waiting for my standard tenth results. It was as if everything was in slow motion and I was running towards the school where the results were out… no Internet then, can you imagine.

The next time was when I got my scholarship award, and the next when she said she would wait for me at the station to have a cup of coffee, and then I was running to get a bike and racing like Fast and Furious… but the coffee never happened, but the clock had stopped.

The clock stopped many a times later, sometime purely listening to my own voice coming in broken unclear murmur or something that was a word. As time went by, the stoppage of the clock reduced considerably… I think it was more to do with me, stopping to learn and be surprised by events.

The routine of life made things automated without automation, and it seemed like the clock was running at full speed. No time to turn back and see anything or anyone… I was in a hurry and I am in a hurry to reach somewhere and be someone, hoping that the clock would stop then to give me that moment to last forever.

A sudden clang on the table, as the waiter served the hot breakfast and smiled at me… I came back to the present, meetings for the day all planned and go ahead at full throttle. The waiter came back with my coffee and looked at me with a smile and mentioned, “Sir, your watch has stopped.”

I gave a look at it – the clock had indeed stopped… I decided not to wind it today and hold this day forever. Maybe it was time to stop the clock and clock all the moments forever going ahead.