Time
controls us
not money, greed, or power
not treasures or things
just Time
that infernal clock
the countdown beginning
before we are even born
the tick tock of every cell
knock knock of every
heartbeat
Time is relative
so some say
Time isn’t linear
not really, others say
but none have yet
discovered
how to get off
the straight and narrow train
the hurtling thunder
of Time
all around us
constantly moving
carrying change
so instead we scramble
to find more Time
invent new ways
new strategies
new gadgets
we must Measure it!
we must Track it!
we must Manage it!
we must be Productive!
we must do This and That!
we must be on Time!
I will schedule you in!
I will check the calendar!
I think I’ll have time!
But will I?
Will I?
priorities are made
some things shoved aside
make Time for one thing
and another’s forgot
Time is the Universe
and the Universe, Time
and when we’ve gone back to dust
guess what?
Time moves yet on.
***
If it’s not clear by the tone of this poem, I wrote this when feeling annoyed and frustrated at my lack of Time to do everything I want and need to do. I dislike the feeling of always being rushed, or trying to cram in far too many things in one day. And we’ve all had the feeling that the things which are supposed to save us Time really end up sucking away more Time, because we think that means we can do more in one day. And that’s not what it means at all. I battle Time on a daily basis, and I always lose. It was this realization that prompted this poem. Since then, I have tried to care less about completing my To Do list (whether it’s fun things or chore things) and more about simply being alive and enjoying the present moment. We have limited moments, after all. It’s better to stop and enjoy them, even if at that particular moment we aren’t really doing what we’d like to be doing. 🙂 – JRF
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