The Sound of Time

  Inspired by WH Auden

The sound of time

Is the tick! Tick!

Of the hall clock as

You wait for supper.

Everybody knows it

But they think nothing

It’s just a tick, akin to a church mouse waking.


The feel of time is

Scattered pages, holding secrets

The edges rough

The face smooth

Everybody feels it

But they think nothing

It’s only paper

Akin to the pages in Bibles and sermons


The taste of time is

Salty and red

Blood spills, yes

But it heals, it just takes time.

Everybody tastes it

But they think nothing

It’s only drops

Akin to the grazed knees of childhood.


The look of time

Is long reaching bands

Of silver and gold

That shows the passing of hours and minutes and days

Everybody knows it

But they think nothing

It’s just a tool

Akin to a bell or pair of scissors.


We hear.

We feel.

We taste.

We see.

We do not realise the

Traps that have sprung

Tricking us to think

That we are the masters of time

Time is the unforgiving master

That controls and meddles

Not enough time, we say

Time is running out

Everybody knows it

But we pretend

That time is contained in clocks and pages

Time is akin to grains of sand sliding

Far too soon down the slide of life.

There is not enough time.