Five Poems About Time’s Arrow–

Five poems about Time.

passing-the-time
“Inelegantly, and without my consent, time passed.”  ~ Miranda July

As National Poetry Month draws to a close, I bring you 5 powerful poems about the nature of time.  The last one is my creation. 

Time is very slow for those who wait;
very fast for those who are scared;
very long for those who lament;
very short for those who celebrate; but for those who love, time is eternal.

~William Shakespeare

Tree

The Trees

The trees are coming into leaf

Like something almost being said;

The recent buds relax and spread,

Their greenness is a kind of grief.
Is it that they are born again

And we grow old? No, they die too.

Their yearly trick of looking new

Is written down in rings of grain.
Yet still the unresting castles thresh

In full grown thickness every May.

Last year is dead, they seem to say,

Begin afresh, afresh, afresh.

~Phillip Larkin

butterfly-close-up-insect-248339

The butterfly counts not months but moments,
and has time enough.

Time is a wealth of change,
but the clock in its parody makes it mere change and no wealth.

Let your life lightly dance on the edges of Time
like dew on the tip of a leaf.

  ~Rabindranath Tagore

tile_flies_photo

Forever

I had not known before
    Forever was so long a word.
The slow stroke of the clock of time
    I had not heard.

‘Tis hard to learn so late;
    It seems no sad heart really learns,
But hopes and trusts and doubts and fears,
    And bleeds and burns.

The night is not all dark,
    Nor is the day all it seems,
But each may bring me this relief—
    My dreams and dreams.

I had not known before
    That Never was so sad a word,
So wrap me in forgetfulness—
     I have not heard.

        ~Paul Laurence Dunbar

 

today (1)

At The Museum of Time Gift Shop

I wish to buy us

just one more day.

I’ll pay full price,

spare no expense.

I’ll fill our day with

togetherness 

an ocean view

a symphony or two

words that matter

laughter to heal

             hugs to feel,

then wrap the day in sunshine

and a red ribbon of love.

I’ll hold my present

like a precious gem,

through the tumble of time

for however long—

until I find you again.

     ~Evelyn Krieger

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Author: EvelynKrieger

I'm a people watcher and word crafter, author of fiction and essays. I also blog on living the creative life during hard times. When not writing, I work as a private educational consultant. Special interests: dance, the moon, astronauts, beaches, poetry, staying alive.

18 thoughts on “Five Poems About Time’s Arrow–”

  1. I really enjoyed these poems, Evelyn. Other than the Shakespeare, they are new to me. Loved the the title of your evocative poem. So original.

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  2. The world really needs poetry right now. Thanks for sharing this. I was thinking of you on Saturday and your close connection to the synagogue. Keep spreading the light and love.

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    1. Thanks, SImon. My post was prescheduled before I even heard the news. Like so many people in the community, I was disconnected from Thurs. night to Saturday night. Didn’t even look at the news till 10 pm after putting away the Passover dishes. Yes, close connection but it would feel close no matter where such a tragedy took place. It’s harder to hang on to hope these days.

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  4. Thank you for sharing poetry with us fans of your work. I really enjoyed your poem. It reminds me of the bargaining stage of grief, for some reason. For those people I once was close to and have lost, I wish that I could buy time back – not necessarily as a do-over, but rather to savor the moments of love. Our memories know no time but that which has been lost in the present. Sometimes being in the moment robs us of the good memories we could savor when time could be placed on hold. But being in the present has its perks, too, when we discover new relationships or the savoring of past relationships revisited. Your poem touched me deeply, and for a moment I forgot about time.

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    1. Thank you, GLB, for your thoughtful response, and so eloquently expressed. I could not have said it better. I wrote it for those of us grieving lost loves whether living or dead. Trying to “buy back time” and do-overs have been a big theme in my life during the past few years. Staying in the present works best for me, and I agree with you that this allows for the discovery of new relationships while we still “savor” past ones.

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      1. You have a big heart, Evelyn. I hope everyone is able to find healing through their grief. BTW: Your reply means the world to me, especially coming from you! You will be the first person ever to have said to me, “I could not have said it better,” though I honestly believe you can say it better! I must have an excellent writing mentor… hint hint, that is, when I take the time to slow down a little. You will still see me go off on tangents here and there, but this is a first. I dissociate too much for me to know which human time I am in, lol. The present is a better place to be when life is kind and not so scary.

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  7. What a wonderful collection of exquisite pieces on time and I particularly enjoyed your creation – haven’t we all wished for “just one more day” 😌

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  9. No need to apologize for your poetry choices, Anthony. You deftly and eloquently explore the age-old question, and angst, regarding “time’s arrow”. The nature of time itself always intrigued me. Your book sounds fascinating. Is it accessible to the lay person?

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    1. Thanks Evelyn. Re: the book, some sections certainly are (e.g. ones dealing with the way we perceive time, free will, emotion, consciousness) but some are more heavy-going (e.g. time in quantum mechanics and relativity).

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