No one likes to be bossed around, right? Nearly everyone strives to be independent and free. Since I was young, I did my best to do so. I did everything by by myself; homework, projects, presentations. Little did I knew that there was someone—or rather, something that was controlling me. 

Whenever someone says control, we automatically think of a toxic relationship or friendship. However, as humans, we tend to forget the little things. The seemingly insignificant things, the ordinary. We also take things for granted.

This morning, I was startled awake by my alarm clock. As I got up to shut it off, I had the strangest thought. 

Clocks control our lives. 

Weird. I usually don’t have spurts of critical thinking in the early morning. I mean, who would? I just woke up, I was sleepy and tired. I haven’t had my cup of coffee yet, so my brain didn’t have its energy juice yet. 

But as I went through my daily routine, the more I pondered that thought, the more truth it seemed to have. Everyone is always going somewhere. Whether it is heading to doctors appointments, weddings or school, we are on a constant race against the clock. Being late is seen as rude, which results in many being afraid of doing so. Do we really fear losing against a dusty, old, plastic plate with two skinny metal pieces attached? 

I also realized something else: humans feel the need to rely on something or someone. It could be a better hope for the future, their best friends, or even themselves. No matter who you are, we all rely on the clock. Without it, we would have zero clue about what time it is, leading to confusion and pure madness. Why? Because the system that we thought would always be there is no longer present. The concept of time is one of the many things stabilizing our everyday lives. 

Where would we be without alarm clocks? With their chimes, beeps, and chirps, they alert us to wake up and start our day. They tell us when to begin and when to end.  They scream at us when we need to be somewhere. Sometimes we obey it. Sometimes we don’t. If alarm clocks did not exist, society would be in chaos. “At what time do I need to be at work?”, asks Bob. “How long do I need to cook this steak?”, asks Jane. Well, Bob, I don’t know. Since no one knows, I guess you’ll be fired. Jane, I have no idea how long you need to cook your steak. I assume you would just have to leave it in the oven until it erupts into flames. No one would know what to do, what time to do it, and what time to stop doing something. 

And that’s my first wacky thought of the day.