--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The clock is the most scared thing in a…" description: "\"The clock is the most scared thing in a hospital\" — John Wyndham" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b86/john-wyndham-8340_clock_the-clock-is-the-most-scared-thing-in-a_888168.jpg" --- # The clock is the most scared thing in a hospital ![“The clock is the most scared thing in a hospital” quote by John Wyndham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b86/john-wyndham-8340_clock_the-clock-is-the-most-scared-thing-in-a_888168.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b86/john-wyndham-8340_clock_the-clock-is-the-most-scared-thing-in-a_888168.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b86/john-wyndham-8340_clock_the-clock-is-the-most-scared-thing-in-a_888168.jpg) > “The clock is the most scared thing in a hospital” [John Wyndham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wyndham/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Wyndham uses the hospital clock as a symbol of vulnerability, highlighting how time and technology can become sources of fear in critical settings. **In simple terms:** Hospitals make clocks feel threatening. Key Takeaway Acknowledge anxiety around medical technology. Themes fear technology healthcare vulnerability time Mood concerned thoughtful Type observational critical When to use this quote - hospital stays - emergency rooms - medical device implementation Key Concepts psychology environmental design patient experience Questions to Reflect On - How does technology influence patient stress? - What design changes could reduce fear? A Different Perspective May overstate metaphor, ignoring practical benefits. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Clock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clock/) [Clock Scared](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clock-scared-1119131/) [Hospital](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hospital/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Scared](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scared/) [Scared Thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scared-thing-1119132/) [Thing Hospital](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thing-hospital-1119133/) ## Related quotes > [The clock is the most sacred thing in a hospital.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wyndham/the-clock-is-the-most-sacred-thing-in-a-hospital/) [John Wyndham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wyndham/) > [“You--" she chokes on a sob and draws back. "You're scared? What a thing to say. You had me thinking you were dead.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-destefano/you-she-chokes-on-a-sob-and-draws-back-you-re-scared-what-a-thing-to/) [Lauren DeStefano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-destefano/) > [You can't be scared. You do your thing, you hold your ground, you stand up tall, and whatever happens, happens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-trump/you-can-t-be-scared-you-do-your-thing-you-hold-your-ground-you-stand/) [Donald Trump](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-trump/) > [“When they asked for those to raise their hands who'd go down to the courthouse the next day, I raised mine. Had it high…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fannie-lou-hamer/when-they-asked-for-those-to-raise-their-hands-who-d-go-down-to-the/) [Fannie Lou Hamer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fannie-lou-hamer/) > [ I guess if I'd had any sense, I'd have been a little scared \[to register to vote\] - but what was the point of… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fannie-lou-hamer/i-guess-if-i-d-had-any-sense-i-d-have-been-a-little-scared-to/) [Fannie Lou Hamer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fannie-lou-hamer/) > [“I am scared of one thing in my life, to be unworthy of my sufferings.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fyodor-dostoevsky/i-am-scared-of-one-thing-in-my-life-to-be-unworthy-of-my-sufferings/) [Fyodor Dostoevsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fyodor-dostoevsky/) > [When you suddenly saw spider next to you,that would be shocking,,scared thing that you wish that it will not crawl onto you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/coraege/when-you-suddenly-saw-spider-next-to-you-that-would-be-shocking/) [Coraege](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/coraege/) > [“I was scared of one thing after another. I still am. Naturally. How could it be otherwise? You can either be fearless or you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-berger/i-was-scared-of-one-thing-after-another-i-still-am-naturally-how/) [John Berger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-berger/) > [“Once we realize that fear is normal, then we don’t have to wait until we aren’t scared to do the thing we want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christy-wright/once-we-realize-that-fear-is-normal-then-we-don-t-have-to-wait-until/) [Christy Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christy-wright/) > [“The clock is walking, i can hear his boots tik tok tik tok tikking, it's too dark i can't see but i am hearing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neymat-khan/the-clock-is-walking-i-can-hear-his-boots-tik-tok-tik-tok-tikking-it/) [Neymat Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neymat-khan/) > [I'm lucky not to have suffered any severe problems with my mental health but there have been lows, like when Callum was born prematurely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hoy/i-m-lucky-not-to-have-suffered-any-severe-problems-with-my-mental/) [Chris Hoy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hoy/) > [I'm pretty cautious and not very athletic, so I've only had really dumb injuries, like sprained ankles and allergic reactions. I did have to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mara-wilson/i-m-pretty-cautious-and-not-very-athletic-so-i-ve-only-had-really/) [Mara Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mara-wilson/) > [You know, I once did a short film with Kay Cannon. It was set at a gynecologist's office and I was her nurse in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brendan-hunt/you-know-i-once-did-a-short-film-with-kay-cannon-it-was-set-at-a/) [Brendan Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brendan-hunt/) > [Just spent 6 hours in the hospital with my 4 year old baby sister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fading-scars/just-spent-6-hours-in-the-hospital-with-my-4-year-old-baby-sister/) [Fading\_scars](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fading-scars/) > [Thankfully, I found a doctor at Presbyterian Hospital in New York, Scott Hammer, who diagnosed my chronic fatigue as the Epstein-Barr virus, and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tucker-halpern/thankfully-i-found-a-doctor-at-presbyterian-hospital-in-new-york/) [Tucker Halpern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tucker-halpern/) ## More by John Wyndham > [I shall pray God to send charity into this hideous world, and sympathy for the weak, and love for the unhappy and unfortunate. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wyndham/i-shall-pray-god-to-send-charity-into-this-hideous-world-and-sympathy/) [John Wyndham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wyndham/) > [“But he survived, that radio announcer. His ship and five others out of the flotilla of ten came through, a bit radioactive, but otherwise…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wyndham/but-he-survived-that-radio-announcer-his-ship-and-five-others-out-of/) [John Wyndham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wyndham/) > [“You will have experienced, perhaps, that feeling of being relieved of a weight that you had not properly realized was there?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wyndham/you-will-have-experienced-perhaps-that-feeling-of-being-relieved-of-a/) [John Wyndham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wyndham/) > [“We have both been given the same wish to survive, We are all, you see, toys of the life-force. It made you numerically stronger,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wyndham/we-have-both-been-given-the-same-wish-to-survive-we-are-all-you-see/) [John Wyndham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wyndham/) > [But, as I understand it, your God is a universal God; He is God on all suns and all planets. Surely, then, He must…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wyndham/but-as-i-understand-it-your-god-is-a-universal-god-he-is-god-on-all/) [John Wyndham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wyndham/) > [“Personal honesty takes time to assert itself - if it is ever allowed to.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wyndham/personal-honesty-takes-time-to-assert-itself-if-it-is-ever-allowed-to/) [John Wyndham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wyndham/) > [Why was I condemned to live in a democracy where every fool's vote is equal to a sensible man's?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wyndham/why-was-i-condemned-to-live-in-a-democracy-where-every-fool-s-vote-is/) [John Wyndham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wyndham/) > [“It seemed to me an odd view to take - rather as if one should protest that one didn't LIKE the idea of dying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wyndham/it-seemed-to-me-an-odd-view-to-take-rather-as-if-one-should-protest/) [John Wyndham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wyndham/) > [“a sort of botanical glory-hole”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wyndham/a-sort-of-botanical-glory-hole/) [John Wyndham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wyndham/) > [“Darling, whose book is this to be?" "Ostensibly yours, my sweet" "I see -- rather like my life since I met you?" "Yes darling”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wyndham/darling-whose-book-is-this-to-be-ostensibly-yours-my-sweet-i-see/) [John Wyndham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wyndham/) > [“Sophie dear,' I said. 'Are you in love with him - with this spider-man?' 'Oh, don't call him that - please - we can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wyndham/sophie-dear-i-said-are-you-in-love-with-him-with-this-spider-man-oh/) [John Wyndham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wyndham/) > [“It was all conveyed by the nicest, almost indetectably refined blend of sympathy and bitchiness...”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wyndham/it-was-all-conveyed-by-the-nicest-almost-indetectably-refined-blend/) [John Wyndham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wyndham/) > [Find a nice, self sufficient hilltop, and fortify it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wyndham/find-a-nice-self-sufficient-hilltop-and-fortify-it/) [John Wyndham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wyndham/) > [“... the more complex they made their world, the less capable they were of dealing with it. They had no means of consensus. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wyndham/the-more-complex-they-made-their-world-the-less-capable-they-were-of/) [John Wyndham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wyndham/) > [“I'm not romancing. I'm talking about the inevitable time when, unless we do something to stop it, men will be hunting men through the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wyndham/i-m-not-romancing-i-m-talking-about-the-inevitable-time-when-unless/) [John Wyndham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wyndham/) [Explore all 81 John Wyndham quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wyndham/) ## More Clock quotes > [Even Einstein had to rely for his time on his clock.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanislaw-jerzy-lec/even-einstein-had-to-rely-for-his-time-on-his-clock/) [Stanislaw Jerzy Lec](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanislaw-jerzy-lec/) > [“Time was never neutral and often felt dangerous. We either think we have all the time in the world or time moves too fast…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/katherine-reay/time-was-never-neutral-and-often-felt-dangerous-we-either-think-we/) [Katherine Reay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/katherine-reay/) > [Before a clock was in the tower, Or e'er a watch was worn; I knew of night the passing hour, And prophesied the morn;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/before-a-clock-was-in-the-tower-or-e-er-a-watch-was-worn-i-knew-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [A clock struck out the hour of twelve, and the bird in the hedgerow was still singing as we marched out to the roadway,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-macgill/a-clock-struck-out-the-hour-of-twelve-and-the-bird-in-the-hedgerow/) [Patrick MacGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-macgill/) > [“Time is, to put it in its most impressive and some might say poncy-sounding form, my domain. I can see things that once happened,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-rayner/time-is-to-put-it-in-its-most-impressive-and-some-might-say-poncy/) [Jacqueline Rayner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-rayner/) > [Time travel offends our sense of cause and effect - but maybe the universe doesn't insist on cause and effect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-m-lerner/time-travel-offends-our-sense-of-cause-and-effect-but-maybe-the/) [Edward M. Lerner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-m-lerner/) > [My only aim is to clock a time that everyone remembers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hima-das/my-only-aim-is-to-clock-a-time-that-everyone-remembers/) [Hima Das](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hima-das/) > [Time.The greatest creator, and the worst destroyer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/levi-keely/time-the-greatest-creator-and-the-worst-destroyer/) [Levi Keely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/levi-keely/) > [Steven Spielberg seems to have wanted to be a director from 13. He put his dog in a certain position and made him eat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-brooks/steven-spielberg-seems-to-have-wanted-to-be-a-director-from-13-he-put/) [Albert Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-brooks/) > [No life goes past so swiftly as an eventless one, no clock spins like a clock whose days are all alike.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wallace-stegner/no-life-goes-past-so-swiftly-as-an-eventless-one-no-clock-spins-like/) [Wallace Stegner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wallace-stegner/) > [Those who stop marketing to save money are like those who stop a clock to save time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ford/those-who-stop-marketing-to-save-money-are-like-those-who-stop-a/) [Henry Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ford/) > [Time is the nervous system of narration, whether factual or fictive. If it gets confused some of the minutiae of human nature are certain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glenway-wescott/time-is-the-nervous-system-of-narration-whether-factual-or-fictive-if/) [Glenway Wescott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glenway-wescott/) > [I don't know if it's just me or everyone, but the whole vibe with skiing is not so much thriving on competition against others…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/picabo-street/i-don-t-know-if-it-s-just-me-or-everyone-but-the-whole-vibe-with/) [Picabo Street](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/picabo-street/) > [Time goes on, even when yer not looking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-ness/time-goes-on-even-when-yer-not-looking/) [Patrick Ness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-ness/) > [CLOCK, n. A machine of great moral value to man, allaying his concern for the future by reminding him what a lot of time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/clock-n-a-machine-of-great-moral-value-to-man-allaying-his-concern/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) [Browse all 2,738 Clock quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clock/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The clock is the most scared thing in a hospital", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "John Wyndham" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wyndham/the-clock-is-the-most-scared-thing-in-a-hospital/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Clock" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wyndham/the-clock-is-the-most-scared-thing-in-a-hospital/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b86/john-wyndham-8340_clock_the-clock-is-the-most-scared-thing-in-a_888168.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b86/john-wyndham-8340_clock_the-clock-is-the-most-scared-thing-in-a_888168.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b86/john-wyndham-8340_clock_the-clock-is-the-most-scared-thing-in-a_888168.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The clock is the most scared thing in a hospital” — John Wyndham", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "John Wyndham", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wyndham/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The clock is the most scared...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wyndham/the-clock-is-the-most-scared-thing-in-a-hospital/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wyndham/the-clock-is-the-most-scared-thing-in-a-hospital/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```