Kalyani Tupkary

But while nature may mete out time’s passage in these horological devices, it takes human observation of the heavens to set them. Even the most precise atomic clock must be periodically tweaked to account for variations in the earth’s rotation. Some clocks, however, are tuned more directly to nature.

We live with these realities because they make the rest of our lives feel manageable. But time did not have to be arranged that way. We have  imagined  time, at least in Western countries, as subservient to commerce, and attempted to export or forcibly impose that understanding worldwide.

The design of our calendars — the way we arrange our days, weeks, and months — is a reflection of how we aspire to live our lives

our biology is tethered to the sun, yet the clocks society uses to keep time are influenced by a tangled web of political and historical factors.