On Time
Arthur Cotterill wakes up, but finds himself in a complete panic when he looks at the clock. The clock shows 6:50 and the train leaves at 7:10 a.m. However, the journey to the train station takes 10 minutes, not to mention Arthur and his brother Simeon need to dress, finish packing, and wait for the porter to come pick up their luggage.Fear and dread grip Arthur’s heart and mind. He lays paralyzed in bed for a moment, still dreading that he won’t make the train. Finally, he calls to his brother: “Simeon! ... We’ve missed the train!”
After waking his brother, Arthur begins scrambling to organize his clothing. Yet Simeon calmly pulls out his watch, checks the time, then placidly states: “It’s all right ... Still, you'd better get up. It’s eight minutes to six. We’ve got an hour and 18 minutes.”
Arthur is astonished; he can’t comprehend Simeon’s attitude and words. Simeon explains that he set the clock back an hour the night before, so that they wouldn’t be late. Simeon even admits that he told their housekeeper to prepare the table last night for breakfast this morning.
A Little Late
Grabbing a wheelbarrow and placing their luggage in it, Simeon and Arthur set out through London’s cold and icy streets. Arthur’s demeanor remains dubious about their situation, while Simeon walks with complete confidence that they'll make the train on time.But things soon get worse when the wheelbarrow breaks and Simeon sprains his ankle. They fall only 200 yards from the train station, yet Simeon’s sprained ankle and the broken wheelbarrow prevent the brothers from carrying the luggage any further. Arthur’s anxiety sets back in, and he begins fretting over what to do next.
Simeon’s calm voice breaks into Arthur’s worries with a simple answer: “Do? Why, it’s perfectly simple! You must go without me. Anyhow, run to the station, and try to get the porter down here with another barrow.” With these instructions, Simeon hands Arthur a small, bright object and sends him on his way.
Without Simeon, Arthur successfully boards the train for Knype. Once in Knype, Arthur sprints to catch his connecting train to London. However, after riding on the train for a while, Arthur soon realizes that, in his anxiety, he boarded the wrong connecting train.
Through this story, Bennett encourages the reader to have faith and perseverance when planning and bringing to fruition any event. Moreover, through Simeon’s placidity and Arthur’s anxious mishaps, Bennett highlights the superiority of calmness as opposed to overthinking.
Through the brothers’ polar-opposite personalities, Bennett shows, just as Confucius says, that, when completing a task, “It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.”
Bennett encourages a spirit of perseverance and calmness when completing a task, or in this case, making it to a very important event. For no amount of worry will get the job done.
