Time is a funny thing
unevenly assigned
Too much to one
too little to another
Its passing does not click like a clock on a wall
but thumps and pounds like a heart
words pouring out
where blood should flow
to splatter at your feet.
Gather them like flowers
and stuff them back in
Authors Note: As a writer I tend to see the world through a very different lens than most and can be rather cerebral about life and its complexities. The soul of this piece, which popped into my head unbidden yesterday, is that we need to speak from the heart and let our words be as vital as blood for time can be fleeting. Don't wait to say how you feel. Say what needs to be said and keep what fills your heart. Imagine a person speaking but the words are coming from their heart instead of their mouth and falling to the ground. The person opposite them is picking them up and putting them in their heart.
Your primroses are lovely! I've had primrose envy for the past few weeks, as they rarely survive here in the hot/cold/clay soil Midwest. Your poem is pretty scary and ominous and violent, not at all like your beautiful flowers. :-) -Beth
ReplyDeleteThanks! Maybe the author's note will help clarify the writing. :o)
DeleteA rather wonderful and vibrant account of time. I agree wholeheartedly with the sentiment.
ReplyDelete"Vibrant"! I love that!
Delete“we need to speak from the heart”
ReplyDeleteHow does one know when he or she speaking from the heart, and are there not levels of the heart? I joined a group for people recovering from grief. It contains a Episcopal deacon—the leader—and there are two other women in the group—me being the sole male. One of the women, who had lost a child to suicide, said that my grief wasn’t worthy of the group, and the other, upon learning that I’m originally from Mississippi, said that the movie Deliverance represents an accurate portrayal of life in the South. Both of these women express pride in their openness, but their openness only consists of anger, and in this class it is for some reason focused on me.
It sounds like both women are speaking from a place of pain or ignorance. Openness is a way of approaching life that acknowledges there is more than one perspective to everything. To me, speaking from the heart means being honest with yourself and others and not waiting til you're out of time to tell people how you feel or felt. When my time is up I want my list of Things I Never Said But Really Should Have to be empty. :o)
DeleteSnowbrush - you owe it to yourself not to pay heed to stupidity. No-one can feel your pain but you, and regardless of its depth, it is no more or less worthy of acknowledgement than the pain of either of your group mates. Often, people's insistence to quantify, measure and compare drives me crazy. Hang in there, and don't let them get to you. If that deacon was worth his salt, he should make that very clear to the rest of the group. Tammy, I love how you see the world! There is a lot of wisdom in your words. :)
DeleteLots of wisdom in this response, too, Anna! I think you and I have a very similar world view. Maybe it's a Swedish thing! ;o)
DeleteI love this poem. You have a gift with words. The Geum photo is wonderful also.
ReplyDeleteThanks. :o) The geums have loved all the rain this spring.
DeleteI loved your poem but I also understand Snowbrush's concern. You are a remarkably self-aware, honest and good-hearted person and I would take to heart anything you said. I can't say that of everyone I interact with, though.
ReplyDeleteI can't, either. I have people I interact with that are routinely disingenuous and assholish. You get tired of filtering their crap so you just reject all of it. But when someone is genuine, it can have a huge impact.
DeleteThis speaks to me in my current state of mind. I'm not sure I can explain in a short comment what that means, but it has been a very strange spring. Nothing bad has happened (except for the current political climate), but many little scattered events, leaving me feeling unsettled. So, anyway, thanks for sharing your thoughts and your talents. :)
ReplyDeleteA feeling of being unsettled brings so much unease and that in itself is a pain in the butt.
DeleteWonderful poem! Time, time, time... For some, tempus fugit. For others, not so much.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Laurrie!
DeleteWords of wisdom, Tammy. There are so many things I wish I had said to those I love, and now it's too late. On the other hand, I wish I could take back just as many words. I must remember these flowers filling their hearts.
ReplyDeleteAmen, sister!
DeleteI just loved this and the lovely way you write. I wholeheartedly agree with you. Some lovely images too.xxx
ReplyDeleteThanks! Every now and then I get lucky with my cheap little camera. :o)
DeleteI especially like the first line of your poem. Time is unevenly assigned, and it seems so unfair many times, and that's a lovely way to put it. I also believe we should work hard to speak from the heart, but that doesn't mean we have to speak everything we think. I guess I think we need to consider why we are speaking.
ReplyDeleteApologies don't unsay what's been said. Speaking from the heart doesn't mean that everything will be affirming and pretty but you can be honest about the way you feel without being destructive. I can be fairly unfiltered at times but have to remind myself that not everyone loves my opinion as much as I do. ;o)
DeleteI agree with you Tammy saying 'Don't wait to say how you feel' We have to be sincere and cardiac.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you could relate to the poem. :o)
DeleteLovely thoughts Tammy....I believe as you do...speak what is in your heart.
ReplyDeleteAll the Things I Never Said shouldn't be a long list. :o)
DeleteI like "unevenly assigned". Even to the same person, there are times when there is too much and times when there is too little.
ReplyDeleteI agree 100%!
DeleteBeautifully said – and lovely accompanying photos – and all the comments above just emphasises how much your poem has hit home with everyone :-)
ReplyDeleteThanks! I wasn't sure how much this would resonate with my readers. I think the author's note helped. I do love the photos, too. These were taken in all our rainy, cloudy, sporadically sunny weather and I love the way they turned out.
DeleteI love these words from the heart...so truly said. They mean a lot to me.
ReplyDeleteTime is a precious commodity and I treasure every minute that is given to me.
People ask me why I am always busy as a bee and I tell them to make good use of the time that they have now for when they no longer have it they will be sorry.
Make hay while the sun shines and all of that.
Thanks and I agree. I'm going to use my time while I have it. :o)
DeleteWhat a poignant picture your words drew. Noone knows what is around the corner - either good or bad - and I am so often reminded of that in everyday life. We SHOULD be mindful of that & be thankful for all of the wonderful moments & small joys we are blessed with...and actually voice these thoughts, especially to those that matter most.
ReplyDeleteSpeaking our heart isn't always easy. It can take courage and humility and people can be dismissive. But I think it's still worth it. :o)
DeleteGreat post. Time is certainly unevenly assigned. If only the good moments weren' t so fleeting.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Chloris. I do wish the great moments would last just a bit longer.
DeleteHi Tammy, when you write, "Time is...unevenly assigned", that, right there, I mean right there, his the nail on the head so hard, it's just genius, you, woman, are a genius! I loved the rest of the poem too and it kinda resonates.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the love, Sunil! I'm not sure I'm a genius at all but the words popped into my head and felt right.
DeleteBeautifully written and I echo the sentiments of the above comment...time really is unevenly assigned. Beautiful flowers too!
ReplyDelete- Kate x