old man

antique timepieces
mantel clocks
his specialty
17th to 19th century
each place in a room
based on the year it was born
this facilitated standardized instructions
for buyers who peered into the rooms
like elementary school principals
looking for something to take notes on
and he with parental hands
would remove one special clock
twice a week
for fine tuning
and adjustment
for although
its body was perfect
not one flaw on its surface
tho it kept perfect time
its chimes
would ring just behind
the others in the room
not by much
but just enough
he tinkered with it
even tested it
but he could not find
its internal damage
so he continued to tinker
returning it to its room
hoping that one day
the puzzle would be solved
some in the shop complained
that time was money
and that the clock
should be placed somewhere else
not with those whose chimes
could ring in harmony
and so
when the old man died
his precision clock
was placed
in the room with broken clocks
clocks that could not run
or those that required major repairs
and without his gentle touch
and a caring environment
the clock began
to change
not by much
but just enough
to make it
just like those
around it