Joaquim Mohsen

There once lived a Watchmaker, whose talent was unparalleled in all the land. His creations were unique, each in their very own way, and possessed the most beautiful and intricate designs. People came from all over to gaze upon his masterful creations. In the center of his store proudly stood his masterpiece, a watch whose beauty and complexity was unmatched. The Watchmaker cherished this one above all. This watch grew to be aware of his superiority over the others and boastfully ticked and tocked, as if time was his to control.

The Watchmaker’s watches all functioned perfectly, ticking and tocking harmoniously, lifting up a pleasing melody to the gods. Yet in the rare instance they fell out of a rhythm, they would whisper their plight, not with a tick or a tock, but instead with a click or clock. The Watchmaker, his ears attuned to hear such a change, never failed in hearing his precious works cries for help.

Yet his grandest watch never once clicked or clocked. He mocked the feebleness of the others that did. “Only the weak and pathetic have need for a watchmaker, not one such as I,” he would declare. The others ignored his boasting and hubris, knowing that he was unwilling to listen to any sound argument. The Watchmaker marveled at the watch’s apparent invincibility, beguiled by the watch’s resilience to never click or clock.

The seasons came and went. Watches were sold, yet always returned when they needed their maker’s loving care. Despite its flawlessness, the Watchmaker’s masterpiece never sold.

One day, the watch became silent altogether. Not a tick or tock, or a click or clock. Shocked at its silence, the Watchmaker removed the watch from its mantle. With extreme precision such as that of a surgeon, he opened up the watch, and examined its inner mechanisms. The gears were frozen in place, having been set in their ways.

The Watchmaker tucked the watch anyway in a drawer away from the light, to sit in darkness for eternity, separated from the caring Watchmaker, serving as a reminder to all the other watches to click and clock before they can no longer tick or tock.