Frozen

If I had the power to stop the clock's steady, constant hands

I would allow no time to pass in this unswayed haven

I would keep the fire burning eternal in its grate

I would dodge the shadow of death, the hollow cry of the raven

And still would be the shimmering particles of dust upon the air

That dance and fall so gracefully as sunbeams at my feet

And constant would I keep the arching sky, in fault unannealed

So never it would crack and rust, and thrum with its raging beat

And laughter echoing across this, joyous, unhindered space

Would never die or falter with sorrow or ache with anger red

And still, this effervescent light in my heart stays ablaze

The sun will never set, the shadows flee from dusk instead 

For I must preserve this cherished moment of glowing memories

For I must save us from a time of misery and doom

To freeze time in my crystalline cocoon, this moment ensconced 

In glassy stasis immured, alone, protected in this room

So, still! Be everything upon my constant watching eye

For no evidence ever should be that time has passed here

In desperation, I must safeguard this personal eternity

And in the sunlight lurks the rebels breaking free from the years

Oh! Would you not give everything to stop the flow of time?

To save us from the years of dust coating the empty floors?

For even in illusion, perhaps the weight upon our faces

In our eyes, so old, we may live in isolation from the wars 

For old age may crack our bones and bestow our shoulders with our burdens

But a full life must lead to pain and aching memories

Should we not have the liberty to life only in happiness

Is it greed to yearn for a life well-lived, a life that's free?

And so, in glass, I freeze this life that always had to end

And, for life to stop, some say we die unfulfilled in our dreams

I say that we live, like ancient flies entombed with amber

Away from the life that never was, nor will be ever what it seems

Reviews

[icelandicblue]

To have had a life well lived it is important to freeze those most precious moments. I love that last stanza where you say we live, like ancient flies entombed with amber. If we do it right there are those beautiful parts of our own lives that will live on beyond our own time here. I think we should all aspire to living our lives in a place where the sun never sets. The darkness and gloom are always following and I have walked with them, and hidden in them on more that one occasion but it was always the warmth and the light that I craved. This is a fabulous poem and it is going into my favorites.

[The Hampstead Poet]

Thank you very much for such kind words. I'm very glad you liked the poem. Yes, I believe that change is something very hard to deal with, and there have been many days I have wished certain moments could be frozen forever. It' s hard to watch time passing, and knowing that nothing will ever be the same.