slowly
as glaciers,
inch by inch
the heart expands
then wears away;
dunes of memory
shaped by time,
discoveries accrete,
then slide away.
slow gains endure
‘till time erodes.
©sgreerpitt
February 2, 2009
All I could think of all week was the line "vaster than empires, but more slow," a line from a 1671 poem "To His Coy Mistress" by Andrew Marvell, and used by Ursula LeGuin as the title for a short story nearly four decades ago.
10 comments:
Hi Sue--
um, hm....
time does eventually erode.
Liked the tone and rhythm of this.
Also was interested in the poem you mentioned that hung with you all week. May look it up!
Many thanks, as always, Sue, for a great take on the prompt.
Well put, but certainly no entropy in your words.
So true, Sue. Time is swift to undo its own work. I am thinking of how long it takes to build a relationship and how fast they can end at the whim of the economy, personal financial priorities. Time erodes and can leave quite a gap.
Love the earth metaphors in this!! Enjoyed learning the trivia about cross-pollinization between Marvell and LeGuin, too.
..without being an 'active' participant time holds the key to many a situation in life..many thanks for sharing this..
You know Sue, your poetry broaden my horizon, and inspires me to read more. I am so out of the loop!
Nice..I like that last stanza!
Sigh!
When you get my age read this again. Of the pleasant memories I have left, the sharpest involve the swelling of my heart.
And sure enough, those swells did wear away (all but one--no, there are more lingering there under the covers).
Thank you.
..
Now I have to go and read that short story by LeGuin. This speaks of awareness and perhaps hints at the unconscious time of existence. Some things we get, some ideas we remember, some we have to be reminded of? Thanks for this, Sue.
Love this one, Sue. So much think about and to look up.
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