Here I thought I'd take a brief look at how "time" is personified in poetry. Some of the poems only have about one line about time, but seeing as I don't want to make this incredibly long and boring I'll probably only post two or three poems.
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| Let it be forgotten, as a flower is forgotten,
Forgotten as a fire that once was singing gold,
Let it be forgotten forever and ever,
Time is a kind friend, he will make us old.
If anyone asks, say it was forgotten
Long and long ago,
As a flower, as a fire, as a hushed footfall
In a long-forgotten snow.
-Sara Teasdale
Time is only mentioned once in this poem, but that one line makes an impact. Part of what I like about it is the fact that the author considers that time making her old is "kind", whereas in many writings time and aging are considered enemies instead of friends.
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| | To-night I close my eyes and see
A strange procession passing me--
The years before I saw your face
Go by me with a wistful grace;
They pass, the sensitive, shy years,
As one who strives to dance, half blind with tears.
The years went by and never knew
That each one brought me nearer you;
Their path was narrow and apart
And yet it led me to your heart--
Oh, sensitive, shy years, oh, lonely years,
That strove to sing with voices drowned in tears.
-Sara Teasdale
Although this poem does not use the actual word "time", I figured that personification of years is fairly close. This poem creates a bit of an odd picture, conjuring the image of "years" almost as a procession of people. These "years" are described as sensitive and shy, walking along in tears in a parade past the poet. I have never heard years described in this manner before, so it made me take notice of it.
P.S. The reason there are no pictures with these posts is that my computer apparently has objections to letting me put anything on this site.
P.P.S I realize that a lot of the posts are Sara Teasdale poems, so my apologies if you don't like them. They have worked well so far, but I will be trying to use more of the work of other poets as well. |
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