---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: They waited and watched, while the clocks…"
description: "\"“They waited and watched, while the clocks seemed to resist time.”\" — R.J. Lawrence"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af4/r-j-lawrence-18249_clock_they-waited-and-watched-while-the-clocks_1823853.jpg"
---

#  They waited and watched, while the clocks seemed to resist…

![“They waited and watched, while the clocks seemed to resist time.” quote by R.J. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af4/r-j-lawrence-18249_clock_they-waited-and-watched-while-the-clocks_1823853.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af4/r-j-lawrence-18249_clock_they-waited-and-watched-while-the-clocks_1823853.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af4/r-j-lawrence-18249_clock_they-waited-and-watched-while-the-clocks_1823853.jpg)

> ““They waited and watched, while the clocks seemed to resist time.””

[R.J. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-j-lawrence/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Time feels resistant as observers wait, highlighting the tension between anticipation and the passage of time.

**In simple terms:** Waiting makes time seem to slow.

Key Takeaway

Embrace patience during uncertain periods.

Themes

time anticipation patience

Mood

reflective quiet

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- waiting rooms
- project deadlines
- meditation practice

Key Concepts

temporal perception psychology

Questions to Reflect On

- How does anticipation affect perception?
- What strategies ease waiting?

A Different Perspective

Excessive waiting can cause anxiety.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Clock](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/clock/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) [Time passing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time-passing/) [Time quotes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time-quotes/) [Waiting-quotes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/waiting-quotes/)

## Related quotes

> [“All this waiting. Waiting for the rain to stop. Waiting in traffic. Waiting for the bill. Waiting at the airport for an old friend.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kamand-kojouri/all-this-waiting-waiting-for-the-rain-to-stop-waiting-in-traffic/)

[Kamand Kojouri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kamand-kojouri/)

> [If they cannot love and resist at the same time, they probably will not survive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/audre-lorde/if-they-cannot-love-and-resist-at-the-same-time-they-probably-will/)

[Audre Lorde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/audre-lorde/)

> [“…in this country shadings of class resist time longer than differentials in age”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-barnes/in-this-country-shadings-of-class-resist-time-longer-than/)

[Julian Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-barnes/)

> [“I waited and watched so many weddings and babies that weren’t mine. I waited through danger and drama. I waited through one bad date…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-crownover/i-waited-and-watched-so-many-weddings-and-babies-that-weren-t-mine-i/)

[Jay Crownover](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-crownover/)

> [We recognise that, with time, every human being will cease being, will only have been. And so we seek to resist time. We rebel…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohsin-hamid/we-recognise-that-with-time-every-human-being-will-cease-being-will/)

[Mohsin Hamid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohsin-hamid/)

> [“...the Need was very strong now, very careful cold coiled creeping crackly cocked and ready, very strong, very much ready now—and still it waited…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-lindsay/the-need-was-very-strong-now-very-careful-cold-coiled-creeping/)

[Jeff Lindsay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-lindsay/)

> [“Oh, the symphonic shriek of the thousand hiding voices, the cry of the Need inside, the entity, the silent watcher, the cold quiet thing,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-lindsay/oh-the-symphonic-shriek-of-the-thousand-hiding-voices-the-cry-of-the/)

[Jeff Lindsay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-lindsay/)

> [Change becomes a Challenge when you resist it All the time. Change becomes a Chance at bettering yourself when you See its potential.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-mckenzie/change-becomes-a-challenge-when-you-resist-it-all-the-time-change/)

Heather McKenzie

> [I raised the camera, pretended to study a focus which did not include them, and waited and watched closely, sure that I would finally…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julio-cort-zar/i-raised-the-camera-pretended-to-study-a-focus-which-did-not-include/)

[Julio Cortazar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julio-cort-zar/)

> [“At last, the clock settled in the right place.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-j-lawrence/at-last-the-clock-settled-in-the-right-place/)

[R.J. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-j-lawrence/)

> [“Silence is not absence. It is waiting.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santosh-kalwar/silence-is-not-absence-it-is-waiting/)

[Santosh Kalwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santosh-kalwar/)

> [“Waiting too long may be waste of time. If you intend to do anything, plan well, and just do it. You may wait for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-y/waiting-too-long-may-be-waste-of-time-if-you-intend-to-do-anything/)

M Y

> [“You can't see roots and fruits at the same time”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pfano-percy-rathogwa/you-can-t-see-roots-and-fruits-at-the-same-time/)

pfano percy rathogwa

> [“To understand the life better, find a corner and wait there! You will then see that all sorts of things and events will suddenly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/to-understand-the-life-better-find-a-corner-and-wait-there-you-will/)

[Mehmet Murat ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/)

> [“It is more important to go slow and gain the lessons you need along the journey then to rush the process and arrive at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/germany-kent/it-is-more-important-to-go-slow-and-gain-the-lessons-you-need-along/)

[Germany Kent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/germany-kent/)

## More by R.J. Lawrence

> [“He celebrated his solitude with a frown.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-j-lawrence/he-celebrated-his-solitude-with-a-frown/)

[R.J. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-j-lawrence/)

> [“She sat at the little table, her expression like that of a child digesting failed plans.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-j-lawrence/she-sat-at-the-little-table-her-expression-like-that-of-a-child/)

[R.J. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-j-lawrence/)

> [“At last, the clock settled in the right place.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-j-lawrence/at-last-the-clock-settled-in-the-right-place/)

[R.J. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-j-lawrence/)

> [“The door closed and darkness claimed the room.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-j-lawrence/the-door-closed-and-darkness-claimed-the-room/)

[R.J. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-j-lawrence/)

> [“She looked at his face. So old and wrinkled. So beautiful and just right.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-j-lawrence/she-looked-at-his-face-so-old-and-wrinkled-so-beautiful-and-just-right/)

[R.J. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-j-lawrence/)

> [“Against ignorance, God Himself is helpless.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-j-lawrence/against-ignorance-god-himself-is-helpless/)

[R.J. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-j-lawrence/)

> [“When the people are not enlightened enough to exercise intelligent control, you take it from them, not to command their lives, but to create…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-j-lawrence/when-the-people-are-not-enlightened-enough-to-exercise-intelligent/)

[R.J. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-j-lawrence/)

> [“She looked down at the gun, harmless in its quiet. Asleep.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-j-lawrence/she-looked-down-at-the-gun-harmless-in-its-quiet-asleep/)

[R.J. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-j-lawrence/)

> [“A smile leaked from behind the boy’s somber face, and then the thing withered like a little flower growing someplace infirm.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-j-lawrence/a-smile-leaked-from-behind-the-boy-s-somber-face-and-then-the-thing/)

[R.J. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-j-lawrence/)

> [“On one side of the room, a middle-aged couple filled the boxes of a newspaper crossword puzzle, their faces lit with broad smiles, their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-j-lawrence/on-one-side-of-the-room-a-middle-aged-couple-filled-the-boxes-of-a/)

[R.J. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-j-lawrence/)

> [“He kissed her somber lips and said goodbye, and then he shut the door in her beautiful face against whatever sanity still nested in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-j-lawrence/he-kissed-her-somber-lips-and-said-goodbye-and-then-he-shut-the-door/)

[R.J. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-j-lawrence/)

> [“They rolled up the path, tree branches raking the windshield like angry wardens.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-j-lawrence/they-rolled-up-the-path-tree-branches-raking-the-windshield-like/)

[R.J. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-j-lawrence/)

> [“You have to get angry in the face of bad situations. It's the most effective way to escape the bridles of despair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-j-lawrence/you-have-to-get-angry-in-the-face-of-bad-situations-it-s-the-most/)

[R.J. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-j-lawrence/)

> [“The boy raised the can to his nose and smelled, his lips wrinkling back as if he'd caught the business end of a skunk.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-j-lawrence/the-boy-raised-the-can-to-his-nose-and-smelled-his-lips-wrinkling/)

[R.J. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-j-lawrence/)

> [“She looked at him, his black, depthless eyes like boiling wells of oil.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-j-lawrence/she-looked-at-him-his-black-depthless-eyes-like-boiling-wells-of-oil/)

[R.J. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-j-lawrence/)

[Explore all 35 R.J. Lawrence quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-j-lawrence/)

## 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

> [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": "“They waited and watched, while the clocks seemed to resist time.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "R.J. Lawrence"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-j-lawrence/they-waited-and-watched-while-the-clocks-seemed-to-resist-time/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Clock"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-j-lawrence/they-waited-and-watched-while-the-clocks-seemed-to-resist-time/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af4/r-j-lawrence-18249_clock_they-waited-and-watched-while-the-clocks_1823853.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af4/r-j-lawrence-18249_clock_they-waited-and-watched-while-the-clocks_1823853.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/af4/r-j-lawrence-18249_clock_they-waited-and-watched-while-the-clocks_1823853.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“They waited and watched, while the clocks seemed to resist time.” — R.J. Lawrence",
                "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": "R.J. Lawrence",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-j-lawrence/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“They waited and watched, while the...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-j-lawrence/they-waited-and-watched-while-the-clocks-seemed-to-resist-time/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-j-lawrence/they-waited-and-watched-while-the-clocks-seemed-to-resist-time/#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
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
