1. The Time Keeper
By: Mitch Albom

2. Journal Reflection- 3/10
In your journal, please respond to the following:
1. "We're so obsessed with time in this country... we just want to go faster and live longer," Albom pointed out. "But I don't think we're so concerned with the quality of our time.“
What is Mitch Albom trying to say?
2. “Try to imagine a life without timekeeping.”
How do you think life would be if people did not keep track of time?
3. If you could control time, what would you change?

3. Questions for Group Discussion
Do you live your life by daily blocks of time? If so, what are they? (Ex: timesheets, shot clock, quarters, halves, periods, etc.)
What would you do if time didn’t exist?
What would you do if your life wasn’t scheduled?

4. Who is “Father Time?”
Usually depicted as an elderly bearded man, dressed in a robe and carrying a scythe and an hourglass or other timekeeping device (which represents time’s constant one-way movement)
The personification of Time and the friendlier version of the Grim Reaper.
Father Time is married to Mother Earth; just as the Grim Reaper, the personification of Death, is married to Life.
He symbolizes the flow of time and its effects. His old body is a reminder that time is the devourer of all things and that, like the sand in the hourglass he often carries, his life will run out, as all good things come to an end.

5. “Father Time”

6. Pages 11 Vocabulary
1. Gravitate: to be attracted to something and therefore move towards it or become involved with it
2. Humility: the quality of not being too proud about yourself - use this to show approval
3. Notch: to cut a V-shaped mark into something, especially as a way of showing the number of times something has been done
4. Beckoning: to make a signal to someone with your hand, to show that you want them to come towards you or to follow you

7. Pages 1-15 Notes Father Time: banished to a cave for eternity:
Punished by God
Alone
Forced to listen to all people on Earth asking for more time
Will soon be freed to return to Earth
Dor (will become Father Time):
First person to begin counting
Different child- God is watching

8. Pages 1-15 Notes Sarah: Victor: Teenager Has a date at 8:30pm
Needs more time to get ready- can’t decide what to wear.
Fears time is running out to get ready; almost 8:30
Victor:
Man in mid-eighties
Wealthy
Dying of cancer
Needs more time to live; fears his time to live is running out

9. Pages 1-15 Notes Nim: Alli: Dor: Stronger than other boys
Became fascinated with power = foreshadowing
Alli:
Beautiful; humble
Dor:
Became a measurer of things
Always thinking about numbers
Used anything he could find to count (pebbles, stones, etc.)

10. Pages 1-15 Notes Man alone keeps track of time- no one else
Dor began to mark time:
Used a stone, stick, an shadow from the sun
Time = when they all aligned
Man comes to visit Dor:
Fly turned into an old man
Poked Dor’s sun stick  turns into wasps
Wasps = symbolism .. What do you think?
Create a new line of darkness
Symbol of order, progress, organization, communication
Doesn’t tell anyone about the visit- YET- Foreshadowing

11. Journal Reflection- 3/12
On page 11, the author writes, "As children grow, they gravitate toward their fates." Analyze what Albom is trying to say by this line. 

12. Pages 1-15 Notes Sarah: Victor: Finds time in a drawer – how?
Watch is in the drawer
Form of timekeeping
Victor:
Calendar book with itinerary – where he needs to be and when
Determined to something about dying

13. Pages 16-32- Vocabulary Swat: to crush, slap, hit
Feeble: extremely weak; not very good or effective
Dabbled: to do something or be involved in something in a way that is not very serious

14. Pages 16-32 Nim: Dor: Became powerful king; great riches, many slaves
Experimented with every form of time measurement that would later be discovered by science
Created the first sundial, clock, and calendar

15. Sundial Egyptian Obelisk

16. Greek Clepsydras (Water Clock)

17. Pages 16-32
Victor:
Calls for research about immortality…why?
Immortality = living forever… He is going to figure out a way to live forever
Thinks money can buy more time
Weariness: very tired or bored, especially because you have been doing something for a long time
Sarah is anxious… why?
Anxious about being late/time running out
Victor is anxious… why?
Anxious about research results/time running out
Doesn’t want his wife to know his plan… how do you know?
“Grace enters with the soup, he hangs up.”

18. Pages 16-32 Meager: too small and is much less than you need
Withdrawn: very shy and quiet, and concerned only about your own thoughts
Swaddling: wrap a baby tightly in a blanket to restrict movement

19. Pages 16-32
Dor and his family are forced to live in the high plains with barely anything
Nim:
Claims to have wounded the gods
People bow down to him; became a powerful king
Dor and Alli receive vistors:
Dor = proud of Alli’s kindness to take them in.
They did not look well; Dor fears they are diseased
Foreshadowing
Nomad: a member of a tribe that travels from place to place instead of living in one place all the time
Sustenance: food that people or animals need in order to live; when something is made to continue
Alli ended up hugging the woman visitor…

20. Pages 33-41
Gouge: to make a deep hole or cut in the surface of something
Dor found a pattern to create the first calendar:
Gouged holes in clay to create months
Assigned every stone to a full moon
Put notches in tablets for moons in between
Baffle: if something baffles you, you can’t understand or explain it
Victor’s wife wants him to spend time with her
He is too preoccupied with his research

21. Pages 33-41 Dor: Dor goes to Nim’s tower
As Alli gets sicker, Dor now wants time to STOP. (Irony)
Wants to find a medicine man (Asu).
Knows “His days are numbered” – common phrase
Wants to stop her suffering, wants to stop everything
Dor goes to Nim’s tower
To make time stop
Ascent: the act of climbing something or moving
Façade: the front of a building, especially a large and important one
“The lust for power is a combustible thing…”

22. Pages 33-41 Allusion: Symbolism: Tower of Babel
Bible story- Book of Genesis
Nim’s tower is what we know as the Tower of Babel
Symbolism:
Red: the color of extremes; color of violence, danger, anger; prehistoric ancestors saw red as the color of fire and blood
Most of red’s symbolism today arises from its powerful associations in the past.
Red= a magical and religious color.
Symbolized super-human heroism to the Greeks and is the color of the Christian crucifixion.

23. Journal Reflection- 3/18
What is the relationship like between Sarah and her mother? Provide one line from the text to support your response? Be specific!
What is the relationship like between Victor and his wife? Provide one line from the text to support your response? Be specific!
What is the message about power on pages ?

24. “Cave”- Vocabulary
Disintegrated: to break up, or make something break up, into very small pieces
Suffice: to be enough
Fissure: a deep crack, especially in rock or earth
Clacking: to make a continuous short hard sound
Souvenir: an object that you buy or keep to remind yourself of a special occasion or a place you have visited
Jowl: the skin that covers your lower jaw on either side of your face
Pensive: thinking a lot about something, especially because you are worried or sad

25. “Cave”- Vocabulary
Mogul: a businessman or woman who has great power and influence in a particular industry
Mushroomed: to grow and develop very quickly
Chafed: to feel impatient or annoyed
Penchant: if you have a penchant for something, you like that thing very much and try to do it or have it often
Disdain: a complete lack of respect that you show for someone or something because you think they are not important or good enough
Karst: landscape formed from the dissolution of soluble rocks

26. “Cave”- Vocabulary Incandescent: very bright
Deregulation: to remove government rules and controls from some types of business activity
Fret: to worry about something, especially when there is no need to

27. “Cave” Dor: Old man comes to see him: Conflicts:
Explains he will not age in the cave.
Now that Dor created time, the desire for power and creation of time will not stop.
Conflicts:
Person vs. Self:
Doesn’t understand why he is in the cave.
Doesn’t understand why creating time was a bad thing.
Begins to regret what he created.
Person vs. Person:
Punishment: Forced to listen to all people on earth complain about time.
Dor vs. Old Man: Old man punished him; got in his way; changed his life
Person vs. Time:
Tried to stop time
Length of his banishment.

28. “Cave” Dor: Lesson to be learned:
Consequences of creating time (actions come with consequences)
Be happy with what you have
“The length of your days does not belong to you.”
You have no control over how long you live.

29. “Cave” Sarah: Person vs. Self: Person vs. Person: Person vs. Society:
Dislikes how she looks (eyes, hair, teeth, extra weight)
Lonely; spends a lot of time by herself
Works up confidence to ask Ethan to hang out.
Questions what to say and how to act with Ethan
Person vs. Person:
Sarah vs. Her mom (Lorraine)
Argue, don’t get along, don’t see eye to eye
Sarah vs. Ethan
Has feelings for him and he does not feel the same way back.
Ethan cancels their plans.
Opposite social circles
Person vs. Society:
Sarah vs. High School Norms:
Not popular – too smart, not attractive enough, not in a popular social circle

30. “Cave” Sarah: Person vs. Time Lesson to be learned:
Wants time to go faster to see Ethan
Lesson to be learned:
Appreciate her time instead of rushing it
Don’t rush your time just for one person
Be more confident and accept who she is

31. “Cave” Victor: Conflicts: Person vs. Self: Avoids attachments
Struggles with his past – death of parents, rags to riches
Cancer: attacking his body, conventional treatments not working
Person vs. Person:
Victor vs. Grace: Their marriage
Talk less
Do less together
Their life together felt like a duty
He pushes her away when she keeps trying
Person vs. Technology:
Victor vs. Cryonics
Freezing yourself
low-temperature preservation of humans who cannot be sustained by contemporary medicine, with the hope that healing and resuscitation may be possible in the future

32. “Cave” Lesson to be learned: Enjoy his moments; less work, more family
Victor:
Person vs. Time:
Wants time to slow down
To live
To do research
Checked his time constantly during treatments
Lesson to be learned:
Enjoy his moments; less work, more family
Money can’t buy time
Life isn’t always about money.

33. “Cave”- Quote Analysis
"Until slowly, gradually, Dor came to rue the very thing that once consumed him."
Rue = to wish that you had not done something
Regret is a synonym
Analyze the meaning of this quote. What does Dor rue?

34. “The In-Between” Laconic: using only a few words to say something
Sarah asks Ethan why he cancelled last night:
Knows she shouldn’t have
Doesn’t give her much of a response
Victor visits a cryonics facility:
Not telling Grace- she won’t understand
Partition: to divide into two or more parts
Steadfast: faithful and very loyal

35. Cryonics Lab

36. Cryonics Lab

37. “The In-Between”
Lethargy/Lethargic: feeling as if you have no energy and no interest in doing anything
The cave:
Was forming
Dor felt broken (soul dried up, mind dulled from inactivity)
Created earliest math
Started carving on the wall
Telling his story using symbols

38. Stalactite vs. Stalagmite: deposits of minerals that form in a cave over a long period of time.

39. Stalactites: are the formations that hang from the ceilings of caves like icicles

40. Stalagmites: look like they're emerging from the ground and stand up like a traffic cone.

41. “The In-Between” Lorraine and Sarah… AND… Victor and Grace
Used to be closer
Not on the same page
Victor is thinking about a completely different life
Grace is trying to enjoy the life they still have together.

42. Partner Discussion Consider the following:
Victor is in his study alone
Sarah is in her bedroom alone
“It is this time. Right Now. Our time on our Earth. And Dor’s time to be set free.”
Why is it Dor’s time to be set free?
Why do you think this section is titled “The In- Between”

43. “Falling” Dor has been in the cave for 6,000 years.
Gape: to look at something for a long time, especially with your mouth open, because you are very surprised or shocked
Dor gaped in disbelief.
An hourglass formed:
Dor can now control time.
Every moment of the universe is in the hourglass.
Penance: something that you must do to show that you are sorry for something you have done wrong

44. “Falling” Dor needs to learn:
Purpose of the hourglass
Purpose of his life at this point
“It is never too late or too soon. It is when it is supposed to be.” – The Old Man… What does this mean?
Dor doesn’t understand how two people can make such a difference in the world.
Cryonics simile: Freezing = a lifeboat to the future

45. “Falling” Old man’s words: “Listen for their misery.”
Dor hears the voices of an older man and younger woman
“Another lifetime”
“Make it stop”
These are his clues to finding the two people.
Wind came and Dor flew into the air
Began “falling” to Earth.

46. “Falling”
Exit Slip:
Why is Dor going back to Earth? What is his task? (Hint- Page 79)

47. “Falling”- Review
1. What will Dor learn by the end of his journey? P. 80
2. “But a desperate heart will seduce the mind” p What does this quote mean?
3. Prediction: What do you think Dor will use his hourglass to do?
4. If you could give Sarah and Victor advice at this point, what would you tell them?

48. “Earth”
The divorce is what changed everything for Sarah, as well as the relationship between her and her mother.
Tapas: small dishes of food eaten as part of the first course of a Spanish meal
Dor lands in Spain at a December festival:
Hanging as a mannequin in the middle of the festival.
What did dropping the hourglass mean for Dor?
He can start and slow time down.
Changed everything.
Felt powerful

49. “Earth” What happened between Ethan and Sarah:
Ethan did not really commit to hanging out
Drank alcohol
Kissed
Ethan tried to take it too far; Sarah stopped him
As a result of their night:
Sarah is unsure of whether or not she did the right thing.
Comes across as desperate in this section.
Now, Sarah wants to buy him a gift.
Money doesn’t buy love.
Thinks she can buy his love (buying a him a gift will make him like her).

50. “Earth”
Dor:
Slows time to meet his needs
Used his power of the hourglass to explore the world.
Perplexed: confused and worried by something that you do not understand
Adept: good at something that needs care and skill
Leery: careful in the way that you deal with something or someone because you do not trust them
Bequeath: to pass knowledge, customs etc to people who come after you or live after you

51. “Earth” Victor wants to change the rules of cryonics…How?
Bribing Jed with his money
Victor wants Jed to begin the cryonics process when he is almost dead, instead of the moment he dies.
Then- Victor wants Jed to lie and say Victor was dead when he really wasn’t yet.
Victor thinks his chances of cryonics working will improve if done this way.

52. “Earth” Immerse: to become completely involved in an activity
Elongate: to become longer, or make something longer than normal:
Dor immersed himself in the modern world:
Got a haircut
Wears modern clothes
Goes to the library to learn (spelling, reads literature, reads history, studies maps)
In Germany, Dor hears the two voices again:
Swam the Atlantic Ocean
Landed in New York City
NYC= a metropolis (a very large city that is the most important city in a country or area)

53. Pendulum Clock

54. “City” One of the world’s most common question:
“What time is it?”
Dor decides to take a job in a clock shop.
Why?
What he knows best.
Will wait here for Sarah and Victor
Victor:
Wants a timepiece- symbolic for him
Stop it the moment he freezes; start it back up when brought back to life.
Enters the clock shop – encounters Dor – Dor realizes who the man is.

55. “City”
Sarah:
P. 112“Sometimes when you are not getting the love you want, giving makes you think you will.”
What does this mean?
How does it apply to Sarah?
What prediction can you make at this point?
Victor:
Bought a pocket watch = another thing he WON’T tell Grace about.
Brimming: to have a lot of a particular thing, quality, or emotion

56. “City” Victor: “Some lunatic with a death wish,” Victor said.
Planning to be dead by New Year’s Eve.
Getting his affairs in order… his money
Sees a man across the street just sitting on the ledge and cradling something in his arms.
Foreshadowing?
“Some lunatic with a death wish,” Victor said.
What is ironic about this statement?
Sarah enters the clock shop...encounters Dor and he realizes who she is

57. “City” Dor: Victor: Would sit at the top of skyscrapers at night
Silence the city and think
At this point- he still doesn’t understand why Victor and Sarah are the two souls he must help.
“But a man who can take anything will find most things unsatisfying. And a man without memories is just a shell.” – p. 122
What does this mean?
Victor:
Skin graft: created in your arm or leg to allow your blood to flow from your body through the dialysis machine to be cleaned and back into your body.
Dor becomes a shadow in Victor’s hospital room.
Notices he is impatient
Why?
Just wants to “die” and let the freezing process begin

58. “City” Sarah: Thinks they have a relationship they really don’t.
Chasing after Ethan
Keeps texting him, no response
Waits for him at school

59. “City” Dor: Sarah: Victor asks him how he knows so much about time
Dor says: “It was once an interest of mine.”
Understatement
Heard Victor as a child asking for time.
Sarah:
Changing for Ethan: cuts classes now.
Decides to inscribe a message on Ethan’s watch
“Time flies with you.”
What does the expression “time flies” mean?
“I think he’s like the one for me. But I don’t want to overdo it.”
Dramatic irony- We, as the audience, know she is overdoing it. She has no clue.

60. “City”
Victor:
Asked for time to go backward when he was a child after his father’s death… “Please make it yesterday.”
“We all yearn for what we have lost. But sometimes, we forget what we have.”
What does this mean?
How does it apply in this book so far?
Sarah plans to meet Ethan Christmas night at Dunkin Donuts to give him his Christmas gift.
Prediction?

61. “City” Journal Assignment:
How are Victor and Sarah letting time pass them by?
How are Sarah and Victor both continuing to stray from reality?
What is your interpretation of the last page of the section (Chapter 54)?
What is happening?
What do you predict is going to happen?