Representation pic/Thinkstock

My godchild, Lyle, suggested I mention him in my column. He wanted to be identified as "an eight-year-old boy, in grade three, who has a great mind." As I write this, he is restlessly working the rocking chair in our home in Goa. His nervous energy is palpable. He is, in fact, waiting, as he sips on his tea. He is waiting for me to finish this column, because I promised to take him to Margao to buy him a watch as a Christmas gift. I'm not sure he even knows precisely how to read time. But I loved that he specifically asked for a watch. And, of course, I'm a sucker for metaphor. What better way to end the year than with a meditation on reading time?