A Ribbon from Time🔊

In the small township of Arden lives a man named Elias. Story unfolds in the late 18th Century, during the times when society was simmering with Enlightenment ideas. Elias was a clockmaker - his reputation known across the country for his intricate, bespoke creations. Born into a humble family, Elias was gifted with the skill of unraveling the mysteries of time. He has an incredible ability to turn seemingly insignificant pieces of metal into dynamic, fluid machines that ticked and tocked away, mirroring the unfathomable concept of time.

Elias's clocks were not ordinary clocks. They had a certain warmth in them, a certain life. His customers claimed that every tick of the clock resonated with the rhythm of their hearts. Moreover, every clock he made was unique— designed specifically for the client. In essence, Elias did not believe in merely selling time-keepers, he believed in creating pieces of art casting a captivating reflection of the customer's personality.

One day, Margery, a spirited, young woman from a village nearby, came into his workshop with an intriguing request. She wanted Elias to make a clock that could bring back time. Her father was gripped by a debilitating disease and his days were rapidly dwindling. Knowing about the magic that resided in Elias's clocks, she hoped that he could somehow create a piece that could rewind time, to give her father a chance to live his remaining days with more vigour.

Elias, moved by her pleading eyes, agreed to the impossible task. For days he laboured away, tinkering at his workbench. He poured every ounce of his skill, hope, and unspoken prayers into the new piece. His hands, aged and wise from years of crafting, held a steadfast determination as they pieced together a complex dance of gears and springs.

His creation, when it was ready, was a marvel unlike any other. The clock was not just a teller of time, it was a messenger of memories and a channel of lost moments. Carved into the wooden frame were scenes from Margery’s father’s life- his childhood, his wedding, the births of his children, each indistinguishable memory intertwined with the intricacies of time measured within it.

When Margery saw the clock, she was stunned. Her eyes were filled with tears, shining in gratitude. Elias handed her a ribbon. This ribbon, he explained, was imbued with a certain magic that when tied around her father's wrist would make the man's days turn backwards in time.

Days turned into weeks and then into months, and Margery’s father began to thrive. His sickly pallor was substituted with a ruddy glow, his frail body regained its strength. News of the miraculous turnabout swept the town. Elias's clock had truly turned back time, bestowing Margery's father with renewed life.

Years later, Margery returned to Elias, her eyes gleaming with the same gratitude. She held an old, yet familiar ribbon in her hand. 'It's time,' she said, looking at the ancient clockmaker. Tying the ribbon around his wrist, she offered him a chance to relive his days, to delight in moments which had slipped from his wizened hands so many years ago.

As Elias watched the reverse flow of time, he did so with a sense of fulfillment. He had not merely sold clocks; he had traded happiness, dreams, and lifetimes. And now, it was his turn to step back and once again taste the sweetness of his own life running backwards through time.

As they say, time is a fabric woven with the threads of life, and Elias, the humble clockmaker, was its master weaver.