WHAT IS THE PRIMARY BENEFIT OF LIVING WITH THE PRESENT?

Each line is a different answer, from a different owner.

…

It helps me stay grounded.

A sense of place in the universe. 

The primary benefit has been an added dimension when thinking or reflecting on time.

An invaluable way to mark your progress throughout the year.

I thought that I would enjoy it most on weekends when I’m fully in control of my own time. But I almost enjoy it more on work days; it calms me to realize that it really is only a fraction of my day and my whole life.

Calms me down on the occasions when I need calming.

For us it's been all about the educational value for the kids, the seasons, time, the year and where their birthdays are on the cycle of life.

Seeing it and getting the feeling of "when" I am. 

A  welcome sense of surprise about time.

It makes me more conscious of the natural world: seasons, weather, my garden. Honestly, when I look at it I immediately think of my garden and all the things I have going on in there.

It has helped me to make me and my staff more aware of the value of The Present and to allow our thinking to escape common paradigms.

It's an object that radiates light and wonder into my environment, it's a subtle albeit constant reminder that time moves as slowly as it does quickly. It is in many ways, the ultimate perspective provider.

Being able to follow my wife's pregnancy and the growth of our child using this revolutionary timepiece.

A sense of peace, stillness.

In contrast to a watch, at which you look to determine how much time you have left, I look at The Present Year to see where I am now. In time. Although it doesn't move visibly, sometimes I feel that it has moved substantially.

The year used to be a rush of months and weeks zooming by, always constrained within boxes. You know, the boxes of a calendar, with the dark black lines saying this day is here, this week is next, predictably there will be another picture when flip over to next month's box. Time becomes stuck in compartments and boxes. But The Present removed the borders, the constraints. I LOVE that about the clock. It's a ballerina's pirouette, a swan's glide, a breeze with no beginning or end.

A new concept of time.

I bought one of the first The Present clocks, and have one at home, as well as given two as a meaningful "once in a lifetime" gift for the closest of friends, and just purchased a new one for a working space.The impact of having a The Present clock in a visible area is subtle and profound. With one glance, one feels more connected to the seasons and earth and reminds us of our bigger goals as well as the value of right now in the bigger scheme of things.

I think gazing at it periodically, instead of at an "am I late" clock, adds up to a healthier mind and a connection with time.

Even simple things like explaining to our young children when gardening season begins or when birthdays happen using an 'annual' clock has made the yearly rhythm around the sun more tangible and less abstract than with a calendar.

As for the item itself it is very well crafted. The metal polish and finish are smooth and clean, and the spherical curved glass is a unique feature which overlays to the face of the clock a reflection of the area. It looks great from the front, or side-on due to the depth of the Present clock itself which gives depth to the view. 

In addition to my first edition purchase, I have also purchased The Present Day recently for a professional high-end location. Our visitors all think it is a $1000 or more item due to the uniqueness and quality.

It makes me smile.

An invaluable tool for conversations and reflections on life and time in our household.

I can now consider seasons as units of time.  

I think the present has helped me learn about pacing and the way the world unfolds.

The most important moments in life can be traced back to a location on the dial each year. Our kids have taken a keen interest to planning their next adventure by guessing where on the color spectrum the dial will sit when we depart or return. 

Visual beauty, an emotional and psychic connection with time.

The only constant is change and living with this “clock” makes that easier to grasp.

First of all, it's gorgeous. Keeps me in a wider moment. I try to remember where I was last year around the same time and think how I was different/same, how was the day different/same. Usually people only reflect like that on their birthdays or a special holiday. The Present offers me a holistic mindfulness of time all the time. This mindfulness had helped me truly enjoy what I'm doing either alone, or with friends.

It gives me hope that Spring is on its way soon.

Really understanding where we are in time, the year, and the day.  It removes time from the abstract to a good degree, makes time feel more real, more physical. 

An awareness of time on a grand scale, devoid of the need to consider my next appointment/commitment.

I think of it as a tool to pace my life in a more realistic manner. 

Being able to connect to NOW in a whole new way. Remembering that time is a mechanical tool that can be measured in many ways.

It helps us all value our time with more depth. 

It's a reminder to be more aware of the moment and that moment's value and complexity. 

A great conversation starter.

It is calming and moves my focus out a bit from the day-to-day. I also find it to be a lovely object to look at. 

I can watch the world go by because I feel more control of time, it's a new awareness that has leveled up my perception of now.

I feel more connected to where I am in time.

It helps me focus and center myself.

It's a lovely art piece that spices up my office but it also has a purpose.

An impressive conversation piece which I'm asked about frequently. 

A new sense of scale to time in my life. I love talking about it, explaining it to people and seeing their reaction to it. 

A way to plan in bigger picture ways.

A higher awareness of time and based on that I feel more in control of my time — and not just overwhelmed by the speed of our lives. I have it in my office and get a lot of comments and unique conversations from colleagues.

I'm a bit of a go-hard and can be prone to anxiety. It's nice for me to have something physical like the clock around as a reminder that there's no huge rush. The problem with knowing this about myself is that I often forget to step back and see the bigger picture but with The Present I have a constant reminder to give myself a bit more time.

It makes a great aesthetic piece and gives us a laugh when we register that it's moved a lot.

The entire year at a glance.

Seeing where I am in life and feeling how I have moved forward. 

Being in the presence of a full-hearted art object. 

A conscious thought to slow down and think about how we only have this moment, not the past, not the future, only the present, only this. 

I got one for my mom who is on the opposite coast. We often take photos of The Present Year and send them to each other. Even though we are so far away, on the face of The Present, the hand is in the same place so it connects us in a profound way. 

The special view of the unfolding year and several fun conversations. 

The joy of owning something so totally unique as well as all the conversations about The Present Year and why I would want to have an annual timepiece.

Good conversation starter for awkward family visits. Also, I like clocks and the concept of time a lot so I do enjoy looking at it after some time and noticing how much/little the arm has moved relative to how much I think it should have. 

Sense of exclusivity and satisfaction that I contributed to its development and production. I've never had such an intimate knowledge of how much goes into making something like this and that makes it even more special.

Remembering that what I'm feeling/going through/experiencing is momentary. Whether what I am experiencing is good or bad, it doesn't matter. Either I think to appreciate it more, or if it's somehow bad, it will soon be over too.

It’s a reminder to savor the passing of the seasons. To slow down, observe and tune in with the more gradual changes of life.

Reminder to stop and help me think about where I am in the course of the year.

The Present has opened up a conversation with my child about the orbit of the earth, the solstices and equinoxes, and following the seasons, thank you.

My favorite thing is The Spark of Joy I get when I see it and realize I have forgotten to look for awhile. It’s always a pleasant surprise! Thank you for the gift of The Present.

We love that it's a reminder of how quickly/slowly time goes by and have marked the back with special dates for our family.

Friends often comment when they come to visit "Oh, the last time I was here, it was in the green!" etc..  It's neat to hear their perspective on this time-keeping device.

Thank you for bringing joy into this world. You have in my eyes completed the trinity of alternate time keeping, I freaking love it, its breathtaking in every shape and form. I would like to thank you for creating something truly unique and bringing these amazing clocks to life. 

I do love whenever somebody tells me "hey, your clock is broken." :)

Changing people's perspective of time is, in my opinion, a great gift.

Having a visual prompt to be in the moment is a gift.

The sense that each day feels more connected to the year.

It places life and time in perspective and it gives me room to see what is really important.

A funny thing I noticed, hanging The Present Year and The Present Day next to each other: Every day there is this one moment that both hands point in the same direction. In winter that would be in the morning. And I would happen to look at the clocks at that moment almost every single day. Recently I "discovered" that there will also be a moment every day that both hands are in opposite directions. That moment of pointing in the same or opposite directions follows its own cycle. I find that pretty interesting. Feels like a special moment to see the seasons and hours line up. It connects them.

I love colors, so being able to see the full spectrum makes me happy.

It’s a subtle reminder to Be Here Now. Slow down. You are here.

Mindfulness.

It is one of my favorite objects and will always travel with me through time.

It's made me more aware and grateful of the nature of time.

Shows me how to stay centered and put the world into perspective. 

It has helped me wonder about the nature of time throughout the year and makes me smile because of that beautiful idea.

Simply enjoying the present.

My 2 kids were born shortly after i got the clock 7 years ago. Both of them grew up seeing the present every day so for them it's completely normal to see the current season on a clock. It made it easy for us to teach them the full extent of a yearly timespan and they exactly know where their birthdays are located on the clockface.

It helps me to appreciate time more often. To physically see the year play out in this way is a positive reminder to really use your time for meaningful things. It's also a perfect conversation starter and it just looks awesome on the center spot of my kitchen wall since 7 years.

They are constants in our lives and it has been a constant in the last crazy couple of months. Not much has stayed the same so the clocks, we have both, are very reassuring. Just a big thanks for making these! It's been my favourite kickstarter project and the present is one of my favourite objects in life. I look at it every day and it gives me joy every time I do!

What I constantly learn from it is all the perspectives I do not attend to when I'm jolted out of my daily transactional and tactical perspective each time I glance at The Present. It really is a present, a gift, that I receive each time I see it.

The repeated attention to how the passing of time varies and how the next deadline will also pass. I also appreciate your periodic posts and look forward to your future projects. I like the way you think and explore. So, thank you for that. Stay safe and be well.

Patience and a new sense of proportionality to time.

I ordered the Present through Kickstarter because I had just gotten a new job in a windowless basement office.  I lost/escaped that job before the Present arrived.  But since then I have worked mostly from home, often from my basement.  So it continues to fulfill its original intended purpose to provide a window to the cycles of nature in a windowless environment.

It has helped me exactly in the way you conceived it: from time to time I look at it and I'm able to understand all the time that went through since the beginning of the year and I'm able to value all the things I did (or didn't) during that period.

It really helps my kids understand when key dates in the year are like nothing else can.

I’ve loved it since I pledged my money. It gives me great satisfaction. Thanks for the years of enjoyment.

Time exists and can be measured in more than just seconds.

It’s a great piece of living art.

For me it’s been a new way to connect with Mother Earth.

It helps me appreciate the seasons even more.

It tells me and reminds me of the time - not our usual human time measured in hours, but what's the time for Earth in space.

Balance, self awareness, appreciation.

It’s a beautiful timepiece. I keep it in my office at work and it helps me slow down and take things in when I look at it.

Helps me live more in the present.

Every time I see it I think about how valuable it is to slow down a bit and give myself time.

It’s like a guide to appreciate the moments we are actually in.

The present helps me keep in mind that living in the moment can mean more than just this moment, this very second but to live within the depth of every season. Basically there is more time than I, we think there is.

Honestly, it’s just great. I am home a lot more often now so I get to enjoy it more than usual. 

I kept the original card that came stuck to the back that labeled my clock number 411 out of 2000. I keep the clock right near my front door and it's an amazing conversation starter. To me it's a work of art and deserves to be treated as such!

I am happy when I see it - it is a mix of whimsy and a grounding force that helps me sort out where “I am” in the year.

How our world goes in cycles bigger than the little divisions we spend most of our lives so focused on.

It’s a source of occasional grounding regarding “where” in the year I am now.

The Present helped me escape the rat race of time and I feel that I am no longer a slave to time - I am free.

It’s like a compass that orients me to the long term perspective. Changes by seconds, hours, days are not as noticeable against this longer period of time.

I feel more seasonally aligned; where am I at with respect to the year if that makes sense.

It has helped us to understand the cycles of farming and when to plant. It really is most appreciated by farmers in the northeast. I look forward to many more cycles of enjoyment from The Present, thank you for making it.

It calms me. People really like it as soon as I say it's a year-long clock.

I use this clock with my daughter. This and the day clock.  We use them to discuss the time of day and year.  It's simple and natural in a way other clocks are not.

With The Present Day it's soooo easy for me to indicate to my daughter so she understands that it is indeed time for bed.  She is able to see the hand dip under into the dark and she knows it's time for night. The Present Year allows us all to really slow down in time and understand how the year is passing in the natural world.  Also, both of your clocks hang in my office at work, and all of my colleagues made fun of them at first. . . but once they understood it, they appeared more in awe than anything.

It helps me think about time in a broader context and the nature of seasonality as a whole.

The primary benefit for me is a new sense of perspective. Plus it looks cool and it is fun to speak about when people ask.

A daily reminder of how to think in longer arcs of time.

I do a lot of zoom calls with the clock in the background. A lot of people ask about it. It's nice to do a quick show and tell with the clock so that’s what I like the most. It’s definitely unique!

I’ve become more curious about the relationship of temperature cycles to each seasonal solstice. Learning more about the way the planet heats and cools is fascinating. I feel more connected to the natural flow of time.

It sits across from the chair where I do my journaling in the morning.  Looking at it as I start the day is a centering touchpoint for me.

It’s a way of appreciating that time is fluid as opposed to strictly divided into minutes and seconds.

The primary benefit is the knowledge that we live in larger cycles than most people realize.

It’s all about slowing down to enjoy each season.

Just wanted to take the time and congratulate you on a beautifully executed functional piece of art. I received my clock a few months ago, and I really do enjoy waking up to it in my bedroom. 

I am the very proud owner of The Present Year, Day and desk clock of The Present Day. I’ve also given them as gifts for my husband’s office. He is a psychiatrist, psychoanalyst and he has said many times that your work has opened up valuable and important discussions about perception, time, and even accountability with his patients. Once one looks at something using a different paradigm, one does not conceive of it in the same way again. Ever. Open perception and you open possibility. Thank you for your art!