Our allotted time is the passing of a shadow.
—Book of Wisdom, c. 100 BC
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Quotes
Do not lessen the time of following desire, for the wasting of time is an abomination to the spirit.
—Ptahhotep, c. 2350 BCTime, when it is left to itself and no definite demands are made on it, cannot be trusted to move at any recognized pace. Usually it loiters, but just when one has come to count upon its slowness, it may suddenly break into a wild irrational gallop.
—Edith Wharton, 1905A watch is always too fast or too slow. I cannot be dictated to by a watch.
—Jane Austen, 1814The celestial machine is to be likened not to a divine organism but rather to a clockwork.
—Johannes Kepler, 1605