In the era before things were invented that can live on your wrist and run your entire life, there were just plain watches that simply kept the time. I always had one, but my goal was to get the least expensive one I could find. I knew that timepiece was going to break at some point, and when I eventually replaced it, I did not want to feel I had not gotten my money's worth.
My husband, who was traveling internationally a great deal at the time, had grown tired of my Timex with the worn, speckled pleather band that had become discolored with sweat and dirt. He returned from an overseas trip with a Rolex watch that in addition to the time, told the days of the week, a modern miracle at the time. I greeted his very generous gift with enthusiasm, but at heart I was horrified. How could he possibly have spent that much on a mere watch? And while I immediately put it on my wrist, I was secretly embarrassed to own such a thing.
That was over forty years ago, and that watch is still sitting on my arm. It now feels a part of me, and it is hard to remember when it was not there. But the fact of the matter is that both I and the watch, no matter how grand, have aged. I do not know if the days of the week work anymore, because I can no longer see them even with glasses. But I do know that the mechanism is slowing down, and I must adjust the time forward every few days. But then I am running slower as well, so the watch and I are in good company. While the Rolex company will take the watch in for repair, they will not guarantee all aspects of their work as the watch is so old. I could also probably use some repair work on aspects of me as well, for which there would be no guarantees either. So once again I and my aging watch are comfortably in harmony.
The fact is that older things do not always need to be fixed up and improved. It is all right to leave them to gently drift into other, more distant, latitudes. While there may be twinges of regret for times when mechanisms worked better, it really is all right out here drifting along in another, slightly reduced, universe.