While watching a show about some cops the other day, one said “Watch my six,” to the other. I instinctively understood this to mean “watch my back.” The six, in this case, clearly a reference to a clock face. In fact, the clock face is used for many types of references. However, it relies on the analog clock face, something not taught consistently to younger generations.
Throughout my life, the clock face reference has been useful in many scenarios. On trips or hikes it’s a great way to describe to others where something, such as a bird, is located. It’s easy to use the numbers on a clock face to give the other person a general idea about the direction. This is common with others as well, almost a universally accepted method. I’ve also read that being able to draw a certain time on a clock is used as one question when testing for dementia. Or for helping to assess other cognitive challenges.
Growing up, I had a mix of analog and digital time telling options. Wall clocks were always analog. I had both digital and analog watches. However, they all had basic functionality. None of them could answer phone calls, send messages, or provide notifications. There also weren’t a lot of other devices, or equipment, displaying the time. If I wanted to know the time whenever I wanted, I basically had to wear a watch. Point being, I learned how to read a clock.
Even before the invention of the clock, humans devised a number of ways to keep track of time, including days, seasons, years. Some of these methods include sundials, obelisks, and tracking occurences in nature. Each one of these methods relied on observation, teaching skills to others, general awareness, and learning how to do something. Point being, we weren’t spoonfed a digitized number. Consequently, we incorporated this information into other useful areas of our life, such as a location reference.
In a world surrounded by digital clocks and times that automatically sync, will the younger generation understand these references to an analog clock face? Or is this another dying skill for future generations, one replaced with technology, automation, and easily read digital numbers?